


\\\ 



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iiiii 




MY OWN STORY 



An account of the conditions in Kentuqlyr 
leading to the assassination of William 
Goebcl, who was declared governor of the 
State, and my indictment and conviction 
on the charge of complicity in his murder 



By 
CALEB POWERS 



Illustrated from Photographs 



INDIANAPOLIS 

THE BOBBS-MERRILL COMPANY 

PUBLISHERS 



* Copyright 1905 

The Bobbs-Merrill Company 



V-.4 



April 



I LIBRARY of CONGflESS 
I Twc Copies .-Jsctfiveu 

APR 22 l^Ot 



\ u^y. Ct -Xc. Mo: I 

I //SSO/ 



PRESS OF 

BRAUNWORTH & CO. 

BOOKBINDERS AND PRINTERS 

BROOKLYN, N. Y. 



CONTENTS 

CHAPTER I 

BOYHOOD IN THE MOUNTAINS 

PAGE 

My reasons for writing this story — My ancestors ^- My 
life as a boy in the Kentucky mountains — Our re- 
moval to Brush Creek i 

CHAPTER n 

MY FIRST SPEECH 

I matriculate at Union College — The college debate — 

My first oratorical effort — I teach my first school . 9 

CHAPTER HI 

THE GREAT DEBATE 

I argue about the burning question, " Resolved : That 

the earth is round" — The judgment of my peers . 20 

CHAPTER IV 

COLLEGE DAYS 

My life at the state college — I learn to drill — I teach 
school again — Illness — My appointment to West 
Point 26 

CHAPTER V 

A NEW OUTLOOK 

I journey to West Point — A glimpse of the national 
capital — I prepare for examinations — The ordeal — 
I enter West Point 35 



CHAPTER VI 

SUMMER CAMP 

I Spend the summer in camp — Hazing — I arrest my 

superior officer 43 

CHAPTER Vn 

AT LAW SCHOOL 

I become a third-classman — My eyesight fails and I am 
forced to leave the Academy — I enter the law school 
at Valparaiso, Indiana 48 

CHAPTER Vni 

MY FIRST POLITICAL CAMPAIGN 

I am a candidate for the office of superintendent of 
schools of Knox County, Kentucky — I make a can- 
vass of the mountain districts — I take part in joint 
debates — I am graduated from law school and 
elected to office 52 

CHAPTER IX 

MARRIAGE 

Responsibility of office — I begin to practise law — My 

marriage — The sudden death of my wife .... 61 

CHAPTER X 

AGAINST ODDS 

I am again a successful candidate — I take a post- 
graduate course in law at Center College, Danville — 
Stump-speaking 6/S 



CHAPTER XI 

THE KENTUCKY PROBLEM 

FACE 

Affairs in Kentucky in 1899 — The Goebel Election Law 

— Opinion of Henry Watterson — The effort of the 
Democrats to have the law declared constitutional — 
The outlook for Democratic success in the campaign 

of 1899 71 

CHAPTER Xn 

THE DEMOCRATIC MACHINE 

The Democratic state convention at Music Hall, Louis- 
ville — Many contesting delegations — Excitement 
over the temporary chairman's decision — Bailiffs fail 
to preserve order — Election of Redwine as perma- 
nent chairman — Machine work — Stone proposes 
terms ']'j 

CHAPTER Xni 

THE CONVENTION DECIDES 

Continuance of Democratic Convention at Music Hall — 
Despair of delegates — Judge Redwine refuses to 
entertain a motion to adjourn — Goebel is nominated 

— Democratic ticket — Independent Democrats re- 
pudiate the ticket of the Music Hall Convention — 
Objections of Prohibitionists — Anti-Goebel move- 
ment goes on — Denunciation of the Goebel Election 
Law 85 

CHAPTER XIV 

THE REPUBLICAN CONVENTION 

Race for nominations on the Republican ticket — State 
convention at Lexington — I am nominated for Sec- 
retary of State 93 



CHAPTER XV 

MR. BRYAN VISITS KENTUCKY 

PAGE 

Goebel opens his campaign at Mayfield — His reluctance 
to mix with people — Republican campaign begins at 
London — Opening of anti-Goebel campaign at Bowl- 
ing Green — Goebel refuses to take part in joint de- 
bate — Mr. Bryan on the stump for Goebel — Louis- 
ville election board removes election officers ... 98 

CHAPTER XVI 

ELECTION DAY IN KENTUCKY IN 1899 

Election day — " Repeaters' paradise " — Assembling of 
military — Republicans win by a safe plurality — 
Democrats claim election — -Election board renders 
decision in favor of Republicans 105 

CHAPTER XVn 

THE REPUBLICANS STAND FIRM 

Goebel contests decision of election board — Democratic 
caucus — Evidence of Mr. Harrel — Inauguration of 
Taylor — Rules of Contest Committee . .. . . iil 

CHAPTER XVin 

THE SHOOTING OF WILLIAM GOEBEL 

Effort of Taylor's attorneys to remove Democratic mem- 
bers of contest committees — Suit to enjoin Taylor 
appointees from taking oath of office — Republicans 
seek to arouse the people — I bring the mountain 
people to Frankfort — Meeting on the steps of the 
Capitol — I go to Louisville for more petitioners — 
Goebel is shot — The excitement at Frankfort — The 
military is called out . . . I18 



CHAPTER XIX 

MAKING POLITICAL CAPITAL 

PAGE 

Demand for revenge — Governor Taylor convenes the 
Legislature at London — Democrats declare Goebel 
and Beckham elected and later falsify the records of 
the general assembly — A proclamation — Senator 
Goebel's death is announced, and Beckham takes the 
oath of office as governor 126 



CHAPTER XX 

AN APPEAL TO THE COURTS 

Sorrow over the death of Senator Goebel — Governor 
Taylor rejects the Louisville "Peace Agreement" — 
General assembly reconvenes at Frankfort — Two 
legislative bodies and two sets of state officials . . 130 

CHAPTER XXI 

DEMOCRATIC SLEUTHS BEGIN WORK 

Decision against Republicans — Action of Legislature 
final — Goebel partizans threaten to take forcible pos- 
session of the offices — Situation becomes warlike — 
The Democrats appropriate one hundred thousand 
dollars to discover and punish the assassin . . . 137 

CHAPTER XXII 

MY ARREST 

I visit my father and mother — Threatened with arrest, 
I seek safety in flight, but am taken from a train at 
Lexington — I pass a gloomy, apprehensive night in 
a cell 142 



CHAPTER XXIII 

FROM LEXINGTON TO LOUISVILLE 

FACE 

Nocturnal visit of officers to my cell — Handcuffed, I 
am taken from jail, driven across country to a rail- 
way and hurried to Louisville — A defense fund of 
ten thousand dollars 150 

CHAPTER XXIV 

MY PRELIMINARY HEARING 

Before Judge Moore — The late T. C. Campbell's record 
— Wharton Golden's testimony — Dramatic scene, 
pregnant with dire possibilities, that finally passes 
away without bloodshed — Moments of great peril to 
myself — I am denied bail and go back to jail . . 155 

CHAPTER XXV 

THE prosecution's PLANS 

Arrest of Combs, Noakes, Youtsey and others — How 
Lawyer Campbell and Arthur Goebel secure a " con- 
fession " from Youtsey — Decision against Taylor 
and Marshall — Report of the grand jury, indicting 
myself and many others — Federal supreme court de- 
cides against the Republicans — Governor Taylor's 
flight to Indiana — Denunciatory Democratic plat- 
form 164 

CHAPTER XXVI 

REPUBLICANS BARRED 

My first trial before Judge Cantrill — Selection of a par- 
tizan jury — Disregard of the law for the purpose of 
insuring conviction — Campbell's statement in behalf 
of the prosecution ...... .... . . . 176 



CHAPTER XXVII 

A POLITICAL NECESSITY 

PAGE 

Trained witness for the Commonwealth — George F. 
Weaver's sensational statement in regard to the shoot- 
ing of Senator Goebel — Indictment for perjury, but 
no prosecution — Finley Anderson's false testimony 183 

CHAPTER XXVIII 

THE VALUE OF AN OATH 

Robert Noakes in the role of a star-witness — Later con- 
fesses himself to be a perjurer — W. H. Culton exon- 
erates me after giving sensational testimony — F. 
Wharton Golden's evidence — Prosecution calls the 
Goebel press to its rescue 189 

CHAPTER XXIX 

MY DEFENSE AND MY CONVICTION 

Judge Faulkner's statement for the defense — My testi- 
mony for myself — Cross-examination by Lawyer 
Campbell — Address to the jury — Verdict of guilty, 
with penalty of life imprisonment — Juryman Porter 
— My card to the public I95 

CHAPTER XXX 

AFTER THE VERDICT 

I am again taken to the Louisville jail — ^ My reflections 
on the way — I find myself a victim of injustice, with 
no prospect of redress — Charges and countercharges 
preceding the trial of Jim Howard — Summary of the 
testimony — Howard is convicted of shooting Goebel 
and is sentenced to death 204 



CHAPTER XXXI 

TRIAL OF HENRY E. YOUTSEY 



FAGS 



Campbell's deftly woven statement — Hunted look of the 
defendant — His fierce denunciation of Arthur Goebel 
and paroxysmal display of emotion — His illness and 
his appearance in the court-room — Jury returns ver- 
dict of guilty, with imprisonment for life . . . 213 



CHAPTER XXXn 

A REPUBLICAN JUDGE ELECTED 

Confessions by Anderson and Noakes, admitting they 
were bribed — Youtsey signs an affidavit exonerating 
me — I am encouraged by a change in the political 
complexion of the court of appeals 220 

CHAPTER XXXni 

A NEW TRIAL GRANTED 

Four Republican appellate judges grant Howard and my- 
self new trials — Colonel W. C. P. Breckinridge's 
arraignment of the Democratic judges — Continua- 
tion of the prosecution's "Hang and damn" policy — 
Captain Ripley's acquittal — Judge Cantrill's famous 
charge to the Grand Jury 225 

CHAPTER XXXIV 

AGAIN BEFORE JUDGE CANTRILL 

Governor Durbin declines to honor requisitions for Tay- 
lor and Finley — My second trial a repetition of the 
first — Judge Cantrill refuses to vacate the bench — 
Twelve partizan Goebel Democrats act as jurymen — 
Am again convicted, and sentenced for life . . . 232 



CHAPTER XXXV 

YOUTSEY AND THE PROSECUTION 

PAGE 

J. B. Howard's second trial results in change of sentence 
to life imprisonment — Berry Howard's acquittal — 
Attempts to induce Youtsey to make a " new " confes- 
sion — Torture at last produces a statement that is 
satisfactory to the prosecution — My own position be- 
comes more grave 237 

CHAPTER XXXVI 
Howard's third trial 

Cecil's remarkable testimony — Youtsey tells a long story, 
but fails to connect me with the so-called conspiracy 
to kill Senator Goebel — Admits having perjured him- 
self, when confronted with affidavits — Is again con- 
victed and sentenced 246 

CHAPTER XXXVH 

MY THIRD TRIAL 

Death of my father — I am not permitted to attend his 
funeral — Judge Robbins supplants Judge Cantrill — 
Another packed jury — Youtsey and Cecil testify 
against me 253 

CHAPTER XXXVni 

CONDEMNED 

My closing argument in behalf of myself — Crowds listen 
to my review of the case, in which I arraign the pros- 
ecution — Jury, however, finds me guilty, attaches the 
death penalty, and I am sentenced to be hanged — 
Appeal to the higher court 259 



CHAPTER XXXIX 

WHERE MY CASE RESTS 

PAGE 

Tragic end of T. C. Campbell and peaceful death of for- 
mer Governor Brown — Court of appeals for the 
third time declares my conviction illegal and unfair 
and grants me a new trial — I am awaiting the re- 
turn of reason and justice 265 

CHAPTER XL 

CONCLUSION 

My story written under difficulties — I am surrounded by 
criminals of all degrees — Noise and impertinent curi- 
osity, instead of privacy — Five years in prison and 
still no final determination of my case — An awaken- 
ing of the people at hand 271 

APPENDICES 

Appendix A Affidavit of Finley B. Anderson . . . 279 

Appendix B Affidavit of Robert Noakes 283 

Appendix C My Address to the Jury During My Third 

Trial 295 

Appendix D Instructions Asked, and Instructions 

Given, During My First Trial . . . 469 

Appendix E Correspondence Between Governors Dur- 

bin and Beckham 478 



LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 

Caleb Powers Frontispiece 

Members of My Family 50 

In My Earlier Days 64 , 

William Goebel 7^ 

Goebel's Home in Covington 90 

Colonel "Jack" Chinn 100 

Goebel and Chinn with Members of the Legislature . . 112 

Scenes in Frankfort 124 

A Plan of the Capitol Grounds I34 

On the Capitol Grounds I44 

The Grand Jury 168 

Some of the Others Indicted 186 

Robert Franklin 198 

The Judges During My Trials 234 

My Address to the Jury • . . . 260 

Scenes in My Quarters in Louisville Jail 272 



MY OWN STORY 



MY OWN STORY 

CHAPTER I 

BOYHOOD IN THE MOUNTAINS 

My reasons for writing this story — My ancestors — My life 
as a boy in the Kentucky mountains — Our removal to 
Brush Creek 

One of the masters of literature has said that a book 
for which the author feels an apology necessary should 
never see the light. It is in full agreement with this 
sentiment that my present task is begun, admitting, 
though, that if there is any book for which the author 
is tempted to apologize, it is one of an autobiograph- 
ical character. When, however, an autobiography is 
written for the purpose of promulgating the truth, 
of putting before the public facts which have been 
misstated, distorted, misrepresented — especially in 
a case where life and honor are involved — there 
should be no hesitation on the part of the writer, even 
though the ego is more conspicuous than modesty 
might desire. Thoreau says in his Walden: *' I would 
not talk so much about myself if there were anybody 
else whom I knew as well." Let his excuse be mine. 
It is impossible to eliminate self from an autobiog- 
raphy ; equally impossible to present certain facts and 
ideas in other than the first person. 

I 



2 MY OWN STORY 

Realizing all this, and more, I have decided to 
put before the reading public, just as though I were 
relating it of another, an account of such periods of 
my life as seem to be of interest, knowing that what- 
ever value it may possess is not intrinsic, but comes 
of the unprecedented conditions and circumstances 
which have forced me into becoming a somewhat con- 
spicuous figure in the criminal and political history of 
my state. Feeling that all the environments, ambitions 
and circumstances that affected my early life have a 
bearing upon my present position, I relate them as they 
recur to my memory. The charm of reading consists 
in recalling to mind what is already known. Litera- 
ture is a confession. 

My father, Amos Powers, was born December 
seventeenth, 1840, and was reared on Patterson Creek, 
Whitley County, Kentucky. About twenty miles dis- 
tant, my mother, whose maiden name was Elizabeth 
Perkins, was born about seven years before, and spent 
her childhood and youth. The name of my paternal 
grandfather was Jesse Powers; the name of my 
mother's father was Thomas Perkins. Both were 
originally from Virginia, and on the way to the promis- 
ing West, they stopped and cast their lot and fortune 
among the people of that slandered region known as 
the mountains of Kentucky. My grandfather, Jesse 
Powers, was killed during the Civil War, fighting 
for the preservation of the Union. My other grand- 
father, Thomas Perkins, enlisted in the same cause ; 
he held no rank in the army, wanted none, and 
was always considered a genial comrade and an all- 
round good fellow. He was married twice, and had 
by his first marriage a large family, consisting of 



BOYHOOD IN THE MOUNTAINS 3 

three sons, Wiley, Sterling and Peter, and three daugh- 
ters, Nancy, Margaret and my mother. There were 
no children by the second marriage. Thomas Perkins 
was a slaveholder at the beginning of the Civil War, 
but liberated his negroes before he became a volunteer 
in the Union Army. My uncle Caleb, for whom I was 
named, is the only brother my father had ; they had one 
sister, Katherine. My uncle Caleb is an unostentatious, 
level-headed man, of a cool and calculating disposition. 
Neither he nor my father ever sought office. Both my 
father's and mother's people have led lives of compara- 
tive obscurity, rarely seeking political preferment ; but, 
when they sought it, they were generally successful. 
A number of them from time to time have been 
elected to county and district offices. 

In the early days the mountains of Kentucky af- 
forded few advantages, and not many of my an- 
cestors obtained more than a common-school educa- 
tion ; but, with rare exceptions, the kinspeople of my 
mother, who were numerous, were men and women 
of exceedingly strong character, possessed of fine 
native ability, and took an active part in local affairs, 
while one of my uncles, Peter Perkins, was, at the time 
of his death, a man of considerable means. 

My mother has been married twice, and by her 
first marriage had two children, Uriah and Nancy 
Blakeley. After her first husband lost his life 
in the Civil War, she lived several years a widow, 
and married my father August second, 1867. As 
a result of that marriage there are four children, John 
Lay, Katherine, Rebecca and myself. I am the oldest, 
and was born February first, 1869, in Whitley County, 
Kentucky, on the waters of what is known as Patter- 



4 MY OWN STORY 

son Creek. My brother and sisters were born in 
Knox County, Kentucky, where my parents moved 
when I was less than a year old. My brother was born 
March third, 1871 ; my sisters, Katherine and Rebecca, 
March twenty-sixth, 1876, and June eighteenth, 1880, 
respectively. Some of my egotistic kinsmen have, upon 
a few occasions, stoutly maintained that we are de- 
scendants of Hiram Powers, the sculptor, and therefore 
related to the wife of President Fillmore, who was a 
Miss Abigail Powers, a descendant of Walter Powers. 
But as to the fact of these relationships, I am not pre- 
pared to speak. Be the relationships as they may, the 
chasing of pedigree is a harmless diversion, whether a 
man has much or little to chase. I leave mine here. 
Yesterday's triumphs belong to yesterday. 

My father devoted his life to the farm and the 
education of his children. He always regretted that 
he did not adopt the law as a profession ; conse- 
quently it was natural that from my boyhood his am- 
bition was that I should be a lawyer. He began to 
train me early, and entered me in the public school of 
Knox County in my fifth year. Our home was two 
or three miles from the school-house, so I traveled 
that distance every day, along a country road, down 
Poplar Creek Valley to the country school, in search 
of some learning and not a little fun. 

I remember well the old log house in which my 
education was begun. It had one window and one 
door ; the logs were hewn oak ; the benches were sap- 
lings split in the middle; auger holes were bored 
through the ends, into which legs were pushed in 
order to hold them up in the form of a bench, and 
these benches were placed against the wall, which 



BOYHOOD IN THE MOUNTAINS 5 

served as a back. The floor was of large, hewn poplar 
puncheons. The fireplace had a large open mouth that 
could have swallowed half the pupils without difficulty. 

I remember taking an active part in the games, 
sports and mischief that went on at school. I recall, 
particularly, an incident in which I figured a little too 
conspicuously for my own peace of mind and body. 
After painting my face and hands with pokeberry 
juice, I walked into the school-room during study 
hours to witness the effect of my appearance upon the 
pupils, and forthwith felt the effect upon myself. My 
teacher soon persuaded me, with the assistance of a 
long beech limb, which he kept near-by, to go to the 
mill-pond and wash off the purple dye with which I 
had adorned myself. In fact, I was frequently cor- 
rected during the early days of my school life, but as I 
stood well in my classes, this in a great measure 
palliated my wrong-doing; and I escaped the teacher's 
correcting rod in many instances where I merited it. 

It was during these days, and before I was thir- 
teen years of age, that I fell desperately in love — at 
least, I thought I did, which served the purpose quite 
as well. The object of my affection was a sweet, mild- 
tempered little girl of about my own age, who brought 
me candies and apples, and with whom I walked home 
on my way from school. Young though she was, she 
never hesitated to declare publicly that she was my 
sweetheart, and that we would marry when we were 
" big enough." As these assertions reflected my own 
sentiments I felt quite gratified at her bravery in so 
courageously declaring them. She met me at the gate 
of life, and I thought if I could but cling to her skirts, 
she would take me to Heaven. It was my firm deter- 



6 MY OWN STORY 

mination to marry her, and I possibly might have 
done so had not my father, with unfeeHng disregard 
for our romance, moved from that section of the coun- 
ty. I did not wish to go away; I preferred to stay 
in the old place where I could be near, and occasionally 
see, my sweetheart ; but fate was inexorable. 

Our new home was on a farm of about five hundred 
acres, on Brush Creek, Knox County, Kentucky, where 
my mother still resides. We had been there nearly 
two years before I again saw the object of my ad- 
miration. During these two years, I had often thought 
of going to see her; but I was too young to think of 
going a-courting, and, as I had no business in her lo- 
cality, I could only bide my time. Finally, I had an 
opportunity to attend the church of her neighborhood. 
Arriving there one Sunday, I awaited her coming with 
much impatience, but at last my eye fell on her. I 
remember that there were five ministers present on that 
day ; and, as was the custom in this part of the country 
at that time, they all took part in the service, so it can 
be readily imagined that the ceremony was not short. 
All these preachers were what might perhaps be called 
uneducated men, and their discourses were phrased 
in homely verbiage, but what they said was neverthe- 
less earnest and forceful. 

Two of these gentlemen wore jean trousers, cot- 
tonade shirts, and brogan shoes. The men of the 
congregation, with few exceptions, had on rough, 
country apparel ; while the women present wore sun- 
bonnets, calico dresses, large aprons and other para- 
phernalia to match, or intended to match. As is still 
customary in the mountains of Kentucky, nearly the 
whole congregation lingered about the church door 



BOYHOOD IN THE MOUNTAINS 7 

and in the churchyard, after the services, to exchange 
friendly greetings. It was in the churchyard, then, 
that I met the sweetheart of my school-days. Surely 
this was not the same girl I had loved so devotedly 
two years before ! I scarcely knew her ; she scarcely 
knew me. She was changed. She was no longer 
trusting and confiding in her manner, but shy and 
self-conscious — as elusive as the ripples that play 
hide-and-seek over the bosom of the placid lake. Her 
brown eyes sparkled more brilliantly, her dark hair was 
carefully arranged, her face was none the less beauti- 
ful, but it was not the face I had known. Lovers dis- 
cover subtle changes, while time and distance only 
too frequently dissipate love, as the sun dissipates the 
morning dew. I suppose I was not prepared to find 
her almost grown into womanhood, and was conse- 
quently disappointed. She was no longer my ideal. I 
no longer loved her. 

The crowd soon dispersed up and down the 
country road ; some went across the paths through 
the fields, some on horseback, some on muleback, some 
afoot. Some horses carried one person, others two, 
and not a few bore even heavier burdens. As the 
members of this little congregation departed for their 
homes, or the homes of their neighbors, *' How is 
your crop? " " Come to see us," and " How are all at 
home ? " were remarks frequently heard. Soon all 
were gone, and I was left alone in the deserted church- 
yard. I felt lonely, for I knew no one very well except 
my sweetheart, and I knew her no more. 

For a few moments I was left in reverie. The 
sluggish waters of Poplar Creek crept by me near 
at hand; the shadows from the tall oaks standing in 



8 MY OWN STORY 

the churchyard protected me from the burning rays 
of the sun. Two tall mountain peaks rose on either 
side of the creek ; there were corn-fields in the bottom- 
lands, corn-fields on the hillsides, but I was thinking 
little of stream, or sun, or growing corn. My thoughts 
were not of these. It is said that there is something in 
the surroundings of the mountaineer, — the solitude of 
the mountains, the close and constant intercourse with 
nature, — which causes him, at an earlier age, to take a 
more serious view of life than do those who dwell 
in less elevated lands. Be that as it may, I question 
whether, at any age, my disappointment could be more 
acute than on that quiet Sunday as I stood in the 
silent churchyard, looking at the past and future. 
A boyish dream was then and there left behind, and 
though I had perhaps no definite idea or plan for 
the future, yet I began to wonder, in a vague way, 
what it might bring forth. In this mood, half-melan- 
choly, half-retrospective, I mounted my horse and 
made my way back to my home. 



CHAPTER II 

MY FIRST SPEECH 

I matriculate at Union College — The college debate — My 
first oratorical effort — I teach my first school 

My father's farm was, and still is, a very good one 
for the section of the country in which it lies. He 
always kept it in an excellent state of cultivation, re- 
taining several tenants on the place. Plowing corn, 
chopping weeds, raking hay and doing a thousand 
and one chores about the farm, made up my occupa- 
tion until the fall school began ; and, let me say it in 
my own favor, I worked as well, possibly better, when 
my father was not looking at me as I did when he 
was. In his presence, I made footprints on the sands 
of time, plowing up and down Brush Creek bottom. I 
continued this at intervals until I was fifteen years of 
age. After that I worked but little on the farm. From 
the time we had moved to Brush Creek, I had been less 
wayward in school, and had confined myself closely to 
study, so that before I was fourteen years of age I had 
completed Ray's Practical Arithmetic, and had almost 
completed Elementary Algebra. 

A short time before I was sixteen years old, I 
matriculated in Union College, at Barboursville. 
I was somewhat small for my years, had lived all 
my life in the country, among country people, and 
knew very little about town or city life. It had 

9 



10 MY OWN STORY 

always appeared to me that the towns and cities had a 
superfluity of folk. I had often wondered how people 
in these places made their living. I had been in Bar- 
boursville, my home town, on a number of occasions, 
and the people, as it then seemed to me, were all idle 
and well-dressed. I did not understand how this 
could be. 

It was among these idle, well-dressed people that my 
father had decided to send me to school. The prin- 
cipal hotel-keeper of the place, Mr. W. B. Anderson, 
was an old friend of my father's, and to his house I 
was sent to board. He gave me a small up-stairs room, 
which I shared with two other college students. These 
were two of the leading spirits of the college, and they 
proceeded to initiate me rather rapidly. As a begin- 
ning, the morning after my arrival, they escorted me 
up to the college, and introduced me to Professor 
Hartford P. Grider, president of the school. He was 
a large, frank-faced, kind-hearted man, who seemed 
to realize at once that I was an inexperienced boy 
from the country, and needed his sympathy and guid- 
ance. When, from the little bag in which I carefully 
carried them, I pulled the books I used in the country 
school, he very kindly told me that these text-books 
were not used at the college, and that I should have 
to purchase others — a thing which struck me as 
something of an infringement of a boy's rights ; for 
I had been accustomed to use whatever text-books I 
desired, or that chanced to be convenient. I saw that 
the college rules were evidently different from those 
of the country school, so I reluctantly bought a new 
set of books, and began my school career anew. 

When the professor assigned me a patent desk (the 



MY FIRST SPEECH ii 

first I had ever seen) the eyes of every student in 
the room were fixed upon me. I was a new boy in the 
school. That I was from the country, my dress and 
appearances clearly indicated. Society punishes, not 
those who sin, but those who fail to conceal it, and 
my sin was apparent, for I was countrified beyond 
concealment. I fancied that a goodly number of my 
future companions looked at me sneeringly. I was not 
one of them, or had not been until a few moments be- 
fore, and it struck me they were not particularly 
proud of their new acquisition. Taking this view of 
the situation, I did not care in the least whether they 
were glad or sorry to have me. I was there, and I 
meant to stay. At the first recess the boys and I had it 
out, as boys will, but after this all was smooth sailing. 
Through the persuasion of my room-mates, E. B. 
Hemphill and John C. Main, I joined the lit- 
erary society the first day I was at college. This was 
a new feature of school life to me ; and it was the first 
society of the kind of which I had ever been a mem- 
ber. I was selected as one of the judges of the dis- 
cussion which was to take place that night, and, in 
consequence, felt that I was being promoted rather 
rapidly. The society was to give a public entertain- 
ment the following night, but it became known on the 
night of my initiation into the society that the leader 
on the negative side of the debate could not participate 
in the discussion. After several unsuccessful attempts 
to fill the vacancy, my name was finally suggested, and I 
was selected. I was lacking in the elements of caution 
and prudence, so I accepted, without really knowing 
what was to be done on the occasion. I did not know 
that the whole town would be invited, and that it would 



12 MY OWN STORY 

certainly come. I supposed the program would be 
similar to the one I had just seen rendered, and I 
was quite willing to take part in an affair of that kind, 
for I regarded it as a source of improvement. I was 
there to learn all that could be learned, as I saw it 
at that time. 

At length I began to inquire of my schoolmates 
something about the nature of the coming entertain- 
ment. They told me, with a lightness of manner which 
ill accorded with my feehngs, that the event in which 
I was to figure so conspicuously was to be a public 
performance in which the town-folk took great interest. 
They said that the legal and medical fraternity would 
turn out en masse ; that the business interests of the 
place demanded that the business men and their wives 
and daughters, by their presence, should lend encour- 
agement to the school ; that practical fathers and inter- 
ested mothers would be there to judge, by what they 
saw and heard, the school's fitness as a place to which 
they might send their sons and daughters ; and that the 
elite of Barboursville would be present, because of the 
amusement the occasion would afford. Every town 
in America has its " smart set." 

My heart sank within me when they were through 
with their tale, for me so full of unexpected news. 
It was apparent to me that I was in a bad position. 
What to do under the circumstances, I could not de- 
cide. My first impulse was to have myself relieved 
from the duty. My room-mates informed me, however, 
that it was then so near the hour of the entertainment 
that it would be impossible to draft a substitute. They 
went on to say, too, that to attempt to get myself re- 
lieved from the duty at that late hour would not be 



MY FIRST SPEECH 13 

acting a fair part to the society, of which I had so 
recently become a member. They closed their argu- 
ment by declaring that the only manly course left for 
me was to prepare myself thoroughly on the points 
of the question at issue, and to acquit myself credit- 
ably. As these new acquaintances were my only ad- 
visers, I accepted their solution of the difficulty, and 
began the preparation of my address with the utmost 
zeal and ignorance. It was the first one I had ever 
tried to compose. 

The day and night preceding my debut on the 
'* raging stump " were filled with soul-harrowing fore- 
bodings. Besides the newness of my position, which 
was in itself worry enough, there was the terrifying 
fact that I must make a speech to the learned and 
fashionable of Barboursville. In anticipation it was 
to me a very trying ordeal. Nor did Father Time 
call a halt to his fleetest steeds in order to give me 
an opportunity for preparation ; the fateful even- 
ing came, just as usual, dragging behind it the dra- 
peries of night. I was in my room poring over my 
address, and trying to decide what to say, and how to 
say it, when the college bell rang loud and clear. This 
was the summons to the college chapel. When my 
room-mates left me, I had given them my promise that 
I would not fail them, so nothing remained for me 
but to go. Differing from the wife of one of our 
mountain representatives, who before attending the 
theater in Louisville, announced that she was going 
** but would not take part," I was not only going, but 
would also take part. I hurriedly gathered my copious 
notes on the negative side of the new and burning 
subject: "Resolved: That Christopher Columbus is 



14 MY OWN STORY 

entitled to more credit for discovering America than 
George Washington for defending it," and made my 
way to the scene of combat. The house was crowded ; 
as predicted by my two friends, the town had turned 
out in full force. It was the best-dressed audience I 
had at that time ever seen. I did not know then the 
year's fashions from those of the year before ; but I 
learned later that a goodly number of those present 
were fashionably dressed. 

The program was in progress when I reached the 
chapel. The affirmative speaker, Mr. S. A. D. Jones, 
was waxing warm on the merits of his side of the sub- 
ject. I entered by the side door, and, in a timid step 
or two, reached the seat which was left for me near 
the center of the stage. That the audience was largely 
composed of women was a fact that greatly embar- 
rassed me. I tried to regain my self-possession. I at- 
tempted to straighten out my notes and arrange the 
points of my argument ; I could do neither. Mr. Jones, 
who was many years my senior, and who was accus- 
tomed to appear in public, seemed much at home on 
the floor. He was making a veritable opera-glass of 
his imagination, and was calling upon me to answer 
this, that, and the other argument when it should be- 
come my turn to be heard. I sat there wondering if I 
should attempt to do all he demanded of me, and what 
the people present would think and say if I did not. 
Finally, the affirmative speaker, in thunder tones, punc- 
tuated with violent gesticulations, finished his argument 
and left the floor, amid applause and laughter. When 
the enthusiasm had subsided, the chairman of the 
meeting announced : " The first negative speaker, 
Caleb Powers." 



MY FIRST SPEECH 15 

As there was nothing else to do, I arose and said : 
" Ladies and gentlemen, and Mr. Chairman." As the 
ladies and gentlemen were nearer to me I addressed 
them first, and, as nothing more brilliant or convincing 
than my first words occurred to me, I repeated them 
slowly and impressively. By this time all eyes were 
turned on me ; my tongue was tied. Up to that time I 
had never questioned but that my hands and arms 
had been properly attached to my body ; they had never 
before been in my way. That night they were not only 
in my way, but they seemed to grow and multiply until 
I could have sworn I was all hands and arms. The 
multitude of hands twitched nervously at my side, 
thrust my handkerchief into my pocket, only to with- 
draw it immediately, and shifted my notes from one 
to the other, all at one and the same time. 

Perhaps I should have been able to follow my notes, 
had they not, with the purpose, no doubt, of verifying 
that part of the Scriptures which says *' the last 
shall be first," succeeded in arranging themselves in 
that order. Realizing that they were perfectly useless 
to me in that condition, I crushed them in one of my 
numerous hands, glad to find that one of them at least 
could be put to use. I must have been in a medita- 
tive rather than in an argumentative mood, for several 
times I found myself lapsing into a silence which 
threatened to become permanent. When I succeeded in 
arousing myself, I was seized with an irresistible desire 
to repeat my original oratorical achievement of 
" Ladies and gentlemen, and Mr. Chairman." I re- 
strained myself, however, and said something else, just 
what I do not know ; but I do know that I failed to say 
almost everything I had intended to say. I felt like 



i6 MY OWN STORY 

one irretrievably defeated on the broad battle-field 
of life, a child scoffed at by its own — a fledgling in a 
foreign nest — but the audience applauded when I had 
finished; and this courteous appreciation of my pitiful 
efforts I have always regarded as evidence of the 
generosity of Kentuckians. 

As I made my way to my seat, I was only conscious 
of an intense relief that my part was done. When the 
program was completed and the society had adjourned, 
the few friends I had made during my short stay 
crowded around me and congratulated me upon the 
" fine " speech I had made ; others whom I did not 
know took me by the hand and gave me words of en- 
couragement; they thought I needed it. Counting, 
then, from my first public appearance, thus began my 
public career — certainly not a very auspicious open- 
ing. In the college circle it had brought me some 
reputation, and in a short time I succeeded in gaining 
the good will of my teachers and fellow students. 

At the close of the commencement exercises I re- 
turned to my father's home on Brush Creek. He was 
not displeased with my record at college, but told me 
that I must, in the future, earn the money with which 
to educate myself. My father's idea was to throw 
me upon my own resources. Though his means were 
limited, they were sufficient for him to have as- 
sisted me further, had he thought It the better policy 
to pursue. Self-reliance and strict economy in time 
and money were the great lessons he impressed, as well 
as the fact that education does not consist in mere book- 
knowledge, as many suppose. If the cook in the 
kitchen can bake a better johnny-cake than I, to that 
extent she is more highly educated. All knowledge is 



MY FIRST SPEECH 17 

related. We are all educated in something; all ignor- 
ant in many things — aye, in almost everything. My 
father decided that I should pave my own way to either 
success or failure ; that the world in which I was to 
fight the battles of life was before me ; and that whether 
I won or lost its battles would depend, in a great meas- 
ure, upon myself. He believed that complete isolation 
from the world was a poor way to prepare for the 
world's work; that we grow proficient and strong by 
doing. 

My idea was to teach a public school, if I could merit 
a certificate of qualification and obtain the school. I 
made application for the district school on Poplar 
Creek. One of the trustees, being a personal friend of 
my father's, was willing to employ me ; one was openly 
opposed to me, while the remaining trustees made my 
obtaining a first-class certificate at the approaching 
June examination a condition precedent to my em- 
ployment. They maintained that the school was a 
large one, and was entitled to a first-class teacher. 

When the June examination for teachers was held, 
I was among the applicants ; and a week later I had 
the good fortune to receive from the county board 
of examiners a first-class certificate, with the cheering 
information that I had the highest average of any of 
the applicants. Naturally I was pleased with the re- 
sult of the examination, and presented my credentials 
to the trustees of the Kitchen District School. They 
complied with their promise, and accepted my services 
as a teacher. 

I tried to make the most unruly boys in the school 
my friends, and I think they believed me when I ex- 
plained to them that they brought upon themselves 



i8 MY OWN STORY 

whatever punishment was given^ and that I disHked to 
punish them. Being but a boy myself, I could enter 
heartily into their games and sports. I dearly loved 
children then, as I do now, and it gave me as great 
pleasure to join in their pastimes on the playground 
as to witness their progress in the school-room. While 
strict discipline was necessary, I was always glad to 
forgive them, without punishment, any faults or wrong- 
doings except inattention to study and poorly prepared 
lessons. Sympathy and love are better than threats : 
they secure better work, save more souls. He who 
loves the most is the best teacher, the best preacher. 

I went to the patrons in person and urged them to 
send their children to school ; in this way, their coopera- 
tion was, to a large extent, secured. I felt keenly the 
necessity for awakening educational interests in that 
part of the country. The right use of one's faculties 
is life; the wrong use, death. Man must express 
himself in some way. If only the animal side of one's 
nature is developed, the soul never blossoms; the 
higher nature withers, dies. 

Few of the school patrons were possessed of even 
a common-school education. The opportunities and 
facilities for the education of the parents had been few 
and meager, and these were not always embraced. 
They were satisfied with their opinions, content with 
their knowledge — a recipe for continued ignorance. 
Not having seen the best, they were satisfied with less. 
Their grandfathers had tilled the soil, which pro- 
duced corn in moderation and boulders in abundance. 
They were doing the same thing and nothing more. 
They were not in touch with the spirit of the times ; 
they were cut off from progress. They were not cog- 



MY FIRST SPEECH . 19 

nizant of the possibilities in their own children. Young 
men with sufficient native talent, if properly cultivated, 
to cause their country to be proud of them and their 
achievements, were growing into manhood only to 
live as their fathers had hved. 

While this was true of a great many, it was not true 
of all; some there were among the younger genera- 
tion, who were exerting every energy to fit themselves 
for a life of future usefulness. Some fathers there 
were, who, though far removed from the centers of 
industry, and personally undisturbed by the spirit of 
progress or the mad race for place and power, still 
felt an anxious ambition that their sons and daughters 
should be educated, in the widest sense of the word, 
and prepared to take their places in the front ranks. 
Among these people I had been born and reared. I 
thought that I realized their needs, and I spared noth- 
ing to serve their interests to the very best of my 
ability. Others have taught more than I have, and 
better than I have, but none ever taught with more zeal 
or with better intentions. 



CHAPTER III 

THE GREAT DEBATE 

I argue about the burning question, " Resolved : That the 
earth is round" — The judgment of my peers 

During this, my first term of teaching, I organized 
a literary society, as an annex to the instruction given 
in the school-room. Other teachers throughout that 
section of the country had been successful in organ- 
izing societies of this kind, and public debating had 
become popular. I shall always remember some of 
these debates. Our subjects for discussion ranged 
from the most trivial matters to the gravest and weight- 
iest affairs of state. Ministers, patrons, and teachers 
from different neighborhoods entered heartily into this 
argumentative w^arfare. We discussed the subjects 
at issue with such vehemence and gesticulation that 
the participants were themselves always exhausted, be- 
fore they had exhausted the subjects for discussion. 
Could some of these oratorical gems now be heard by 
our city folk, they would be found far more amusing 
than minstrel, circus or theater. 

There was one debate which particularly impressed 
itself upon my memory. Mr. E. B. Hemphill and I 
were pitted against two loquacious ministers of the 
neighborhood upon the up-to-date subject : " Re- 
solved : That the earth is round, and that the sun is 
stationary." The debate was to take place on a Sun- 

20 



THE GREAT DEBATE 21 

day afternoon, and two weeks had been given to ad- 
vertise it thoroughly. The announcement that such 
an exciting event was to take place created consid- 
erable interest and no small comment throughout the 
surrounding country. There were some who held 
the earth to be round. Others contended that it was 
flat ; that it had four corners ; and that the Bible sus- 
tained them in their contention. One of the country 
teachers will be long remembered in that locality be- 
cause of his candid admission that the position on 
the subject held by the majority of his patrons would 
decide for him whether he taught the " round " or the 
" flat " system in his school. My colleague and I in the 
debate took the position that the earth was round, and 
that the sun was stationary. We collected what proof 
we could to sustain us in our position, preparatory to 
" the battle of the giants." 

After days of waiting the time for action came. The 
weather was all that could be desired. From far and 
near the country-folk came and crowded into a large, 
log school-house to hear that unholy discussion. The 
house was too small to accommodate the crowd and 
although there was a large church near by, it was 
deemed too sacred an edifice for such a debate. Crowd- 
ing round the open doors, and the apertures where 
the windows should have been, stood that part of the 
eager audience that failed to get admission. They 
craned their sunburnt necks and strained their ex- 
pectant ears to catch the words which were to 
determine for all time to come whether the earth on 
which they lived was a round, revolving body, or a 
flat, immovable surface; whether the sun, which gave 
it light and heat, rose early in the morning, traveled all 



22 MY OWN STORY 

day for their especial benefit, and then labored all 
night in getting back to its starting-point to be ready 
the coming morning ; or whether it actually stood still, 
and the world revolved around it. It was a momen- 
tous question. Many silvered heads set upon shoul- 
ders bent by burdens of care, and faces furrowed by 
Time's relentless touch — both of which bespoke a long 
life of arduous labor and constant hardship — could 
be seen among the audience. Knowing that Joshua had 
commanded the sun to stand still, and judging, too, 
from personal observation, they felt perfectly confi- 
dent that the great illuminator of the universe sped 
swiftly along his daily course. 

It was soon apparent to me that I was the champion 
of a cause which was, to the older among my audience, 
not only unpopular, but regarded as heretical in itself. 
My misgivings as to the unsympathetic attitude of my 
prospective audience were strengthened by the ap- 
pearance of the two ministers who were to take the 
opposing side in the debate, and who came elbowing 
their way through the crowd, each with a Bible under 
his arm and each wearing a long, black frock-coat. On 
reaching the platform, the older parson, the Reverend 
A. J. Baird, who had a high classical forehead and a 
pious-looking face, called on old Brother Bays to offer 
a prayer before entering upon such an important dis- 
cussion. Brother Bays, who was a venerable-looking 
man with a long, flowing white beard, rose slowly, and, 
in a voice of unusual melody for a man of his age, asked 
that God in His wisdom be present to control the trend 
of the debate ; and that the young men, whose aged 
parents had lived Christian lives and had set for them 
Christian examples, be not tempted by Satan to harbor 



THE GREAT DEBATE 23 

in their hearts doctrines of disbehef, or sow in the 
minds of their neighbors' children, whom it was their 
duty to help, guide and direct, teachings which might 
ruin their lives in this world and damn their souls in the 
next. Brother Bays concluded with the earnest prayer 
that this would be the last occasion upon which the 
young men would range themselves against their God 
and their country's interests. This exhortation was 
responded to by fervent amens from many voices. 

After this prayerful address it was patent that the 
only way to save my unfortunate colleague and myself 
from overwhelming defeat would be to allow every 
one present, the young as well as the old, to have a 
voice in the decision, instead of submitting it to elderly 
judges alone. My plan burst like a bubble, however, 
upon its very first suggestion. Our opponents insisted 
strenuously that the vanquished should know he 
was defeated; and the victor should wear laurels un- 
claimed by others. So only three judges were ap- 
pointed. That was the first instance , of a packed 
committee I had ever witnessed; since then, my ex- 
perience in this line has broadened. 

The three judges were churchmen and good, honest, 
upright citizens, but their verdict had been formed 
before the argument began. What is it that prejudice 
will not lead the best of men to do ? Mr. Hemphill, my 
companion in prejudged defeat, whose Roman nose, 
sensitive mouth and large, brown, well-set eyes, be- 
spoke for him quick native ability and a talent for pub- 
lic speaking, opened the debate in a forceful speech. 
He was followed by the Reverend J. C. Partin, who 
made a broken, fiery appeal to the audience to be true 
to the teaching of Holy Writ. The thought of the pul- 



24 MY OWN STORY 

pit is rarely in advance of the thought of the pews. It 
takes a strong preacher to move ahead of his flock and 
champion an unpopular cause, for to him comes os- 
tracism, if not exile. 

It was now my turn to be heard. Since my first 
effort at Union College as a speech-maker, I had kept 
myself much in evidence, speaking upon any and 
every occasion that presented itself. Speaking had 
a fascination for me and I was always eager to rush in- 
to the fray of public argument. The " stage-fright " 
period had almost worn away, and I was beginning 
to be able to think on my feet ; but, in spite of myself, 
I still talked rapidly, and often coined strange words 
in my discussion, and used some of those already 
coined in a way never intended. There was one conso- 
lation, however : many of those to whom I talked did 
not know whether I was making new words or mar- 
ring old. Although I had grown somewhat in grace 
since my first oratorical effort, I scarcely knew that 
there was such a word as elocution in the English 
language; and my gestures, if it is not doing violence 
to the word to call my physical demonstrations by that 
name, would have done credit to an untrained pugilist. 
They were in marked contrast to the timid manifesta- 
tions of the tamer moment, when one hand is in partial 
use while the other is secreted at the back of the 
speaker, as if it had already done, or was about to do, 
something wrong. On this famous occasion, I used 
both hands and arms with a boldness sufficient to con- 
vince even a doubting observer that they were per- 
forming not only a very essential, but a very satisfac- 
tory part of my work. I had by this time become 
sufficiently versed in parliamentary proceedings to 



THE GREAT DEBATE 25 

know that the chairman should be first addressed, 
which I proceeded to do with much unction. 

What was the effect of my remarks upon the 
audience I will not venture to say at this date, but 
I am very sure that I then considered them sufficiently 
forceful to make the sun move or the earth stand. My 
memory is equally alive to the fact that, in spite of 
my '' eloquence," the judges decided against me as 
promptly as a Goebelite jury of the present day decides 
against a political opponent — the difference being 
that upon the first occasion I deserved my fate. The 
justice of that decision in that instance did not soften 
its sting. I knew the report would spread around the 
country, my little world, that I had been defeated in 
debate. I could see no solace for my woe. To in- 
crease my mortification, there was present a handsome 
brunette, at whose shrine I was then worshiping. I 
had gone down in defeat in her very presence. The 
meeting adjourned, and we traveled back to our homes 
on the flat world. On the way, the object of my ad- 
miration said to me : " You beat them all speaking, 
and if I were you, I would not care whether the judges 
decided for or against me.*' What balm to my 
wounded soul! I have always thanked her for those 
soothing words. To the lover all tokens of love are of 
equal value, and at that time I considered myself, 
indeed, an ardent lover. 



CHAPTER IV 

COLLEGE DAYS 

My life at the state college — I learn to drill — I teach school 
again — Illness — My appointment to West Point 

As soon as my school closed, I began making ar- 
rangements to attend the Agricultural and Mechanical 
College at Lexington, Kentucky, for the remainder of 
the scholastic year. The Reverend S. D. Tinsley, who 
was then my father's neighbor and who had been a 
godfather to me, heartily indorsed my plan of going 
to the state college, as the Agricultural and Mechanical 
College at Lexington is generally called. The Reverend 
Mr. Tinsley is a man of good education, is thoroughly 
public-spirited, and richly endowed intellectually. He 
often told me of his own college life, and narrated 
many anecdotes of his own youth and of his life before 
he became sorely afflicted by disease. Those to whom 
fate has done her worst often have no quarrel with it, 
or the world, but retain the cheerfulness of youth and 
keep their hearts filled with sympathy and love. Such 
is the Reverend Mr. Tinsley. And here is a good 
place to remark that cheerfulness, sympathy and love 
afford a ballast, as I can well attest, against all the 
sordid impulses and disappointing reverses of life. 

My mother was not favorable to my going away to 
the state college. She argued that I could do quite as 
well in a college nearer home. I could see that she 

26 



COLLEGE DAYS 2y 

realized I would not be much longer under the parental 
roof; that I was now preparing myself for the duties 
and responsibilities of life, and that I would soon as- 
sume them. Even to attend college at Lexington was a 
virtual divorce from home. My mother realized it, and, 
while it was a severe trial to give me up, she consented 
when convinced that it was best for me. A braver, 
nobler, more generous heart has never found lodgment 
in human breast than my mother's. There is scarcely 
enough cruelty in her whole being to brush the down 
from a butterfly's wing. Her life is as unselfish as the 
kiss of the summer's sun. Her children have been 
her world ; for them she has lived. She has always 
relied implicitly upon what I said to her. How much 
better it is to be victimized occasionally, than to go 
through life filled with distrust ! 

After a stage-coach journey of sixteen miles from 
Barboursville to Woodbine, Whitley County, I reached 
the station of the Louisville and Nashville Railroad. 
In a few hours, the passenger train came shrieking 
over bridges and puffing among hills on its way 
through central Kentucky. I bought a ticket for Junc- 
tion City, and boarded the train for my destination. A 
few idlers and gossips — those habitues of the railroad 
station — lingered round the depot as the train steamed 
out. 

I had all the misgivings, as to my intellectual capac- 
ity, that usually beset the average boy with educa- 
tional ambitions; just where I belonged, what were 
my capabilities, were problems which often puzzled 
me. Any satisfaction I may have felt in the few petty 
triumphs of my district-school days was quickly dis- 
pelled by the realization that the field of action, both 



28 MY OWN STORY 

for myself and for the other contestants, had been too 
restricted to be a test of ability. Thus I was at sea, 
but I reasoned that if Providence had been meager in 
intellectual gifts to me, it was the more incumbent 
upon me to make the most of my poor endowments, 
that I might not be a drone through life. If, on the 
contrary, I was blessed with an intellect above the 
average, the greater should be my efforts to develop 
it and make of myself all I was capable of becoming, 
so that the greater should be my success in the days to 
come. After all, every blessing has its price, every 
misfortune its advantage. I had reasoned in this way 
about my intellectual capacity, from the time I was a 
mere boy, and was doing so now as I sped onward 
toward the fairest land on earth — the blue-grass region 
of Kentucky. I could not help marking, when I 
reached Kentucky's fairy-land, the contrast between the 
extensive fields of grass and the solemn everlasting hills 
I had left behind me. 

Great, massive, colonial structures, with huge pillars 
in front — the character of architecture peculiar to 
Kentucky — stood far back from the road. The 
grounds were ornamented by tall, well-trimmed maples 
and other stately trees, with blue-grass growing be- 
neath ; well-kept gravel walks and driveways led to the 
doors of the handsome dwellings. I envied the boys 
born of these homes. I longed for their advantages 
and opportunities. I was discouraged as I contrasted 
their lot with mine. I thought of their wealth, their 
high social connections, their influential relations and 
friends, who could secure for them honorable posi- 
tions in life; but above all I envied them the happy 
privilege of being able to remain in school ten months 



COLLEGE DAYS 29 

of the year, while necessity compelled me to work 
five months of that time in order to obtain the means 
whereby I might remain in college the other five. I 
felt that it was all unfair, and that I had been bom 
under an unlucky star. The train stopped at a station, 
and some of these fortunate young gentlemen boarded 
it. They were going to Lexington to attend the same 
college to which I was going, and there was such a 
marked contrast between them and myself that I en- 
vied them afresh. It was with these young men that I 
would have to contend in college, and I feared the re- 
sult. I did not realize that their lives had drawbacks 
as well as my own, and that the ease and luxury which 
were theirs created in some cases an aversion to study. 
Few can stand prosperity. Emerson well says: 
" While he sits on the cushion of advantages he goes 
to sleep." But this was not true of all the boys, for 
some of them were splendid students. 

But I am anticipating, for now I am only being 
driven for the first time toward the state college. When 
I stepped from the omnibus, I was ushered in and 
shown up two flights of stairs and lodged in a room in 
the dormitory. The term of college that follows the 
holidays had begun, yet few of the students were on 
the campus or about the building; the place appeared 
deserted. The loneliness reflected itself in the melan- 
choly that seized me. Later, however, I found I had 
arrived during recitation hour; a great many of the 
students were at class, while others were in their 
rooms preparing to recite. 

I had been in my room about fifteen minutes, look- 
ing at the bare, whitewashed walls, and wondering 
what kind of place I had got into, when I heard the 



3p MY OWN STORY 

notes of a bugle. I did not know whether the house 
was afire, whether dinner was ready, or war begun, 
so I went forth to investigate. As I reached the col- 
lege building, out from the rooms on either side of the 
hallway, down the two wide stairways, came one squad 
after another of gray-uniformed, brass-buttoned young 
fellows, keeping step in double file, and commanded by 
one of their number. On reaching the basement, the 
command was given : " Squad — halt ! Right face ! 
Break ranks ! " At the concluding words, those 
in the squad who had held their arms at their 
side and looked straight to the front, uttering not a 
word, broke ranks and began talking. At the same 
time, others were coming into the building from differ- 
ent directions, and soon the hall was full of gray-suited 
young soldiers — some still poring over their books, 
some talking loudly, others laughing and jesting, while 
others sought a word with some fair friend that was 
nervously looking to see if Mrs. Blackburn, who had 
charge of the young women, was observing the for- 
bidden conversation. The bugle spoke again, but in 
different notes this time. All over the hall could be 
heard the section commanders giving the military 
command : " Fall in ! " After this followed the 
roll-call of the various sections; then the boys were 
marched off to the recitation rooms, and, in an incredi- 
bly short time, the great basement hall was deserted. 

I was leaning against one of the pillars, as I watched 
the last class, with military tread, march out of view. 
It was all new and strange to me. Left alone in the 
recently crowded but now deserted hall, I reahzed that 
none of these student-soldiers had paid any attention 
to me. Some of them had looked at me inquiringly; 



COLLEGE DAYS 31 

but none had offered a word of greeting. I tried to 
console myself with the thought that they did not 
know I was soon to be one of their number, though 
it seemed to me then that they should have welcomed 
a stranger no matter what his mission. I thought of 
my mother at home, and wished to be with her. I had 
never been so far from her before, and I did not 
relish the reception given me. I was homesick, but this 
I did not dare admit, even to myself. 

I had never thought seriously, until then, of the 
military feature of the college, and wondered why 
soldiers were being made of the students. It seemed 
to me that one of the objects of education should be 
to teach people not to fight ; I did not understand why 
they should be educated to kill one another. I did not 
want to be a soldier, and I was wondering for what 
position in life such a training would fit me. My 
reverie was broken by the rattle of a sword and the 
quick elastic step of the officer of the day, who ap- 
proached me. He was of medium height and strongly 
built ; his eyes were small and deep blue ; his face was 
frank and open, while his heavy-set jaws were indica- 
tive of force of character. He saluted me courteously, 
addressed me in a kindly voice, and inquired what he 
could do for me. This was Captain C. C. Calhoun, 
who later won distinction as a lawyer. When I ex- 
plained to him why I was there, he conducted me to 
the private office of James K. Patterson, the president 
of the college, to whom he introduced me, and then 
retired. 

That the president was a hard student was indicated 
clearly by his pale complexion and studious expres- 
sion. Sandy whiskers descended from his sharp 



32 MY OWN STORY 

nervous chin, and the general outUnes of his face and 
head were more nearly like Shakespeare's than those of 
any man I have ever seen. He was a man of few 
words, rather cold and calculating, with more head 
than heart power. When he asked me for what pro- 
fession or business I desired to prepare myself, I re- 
plied that I had not yet determined, but I wanted to 
take such a course in college as would fit me to make 
a great deal of money, and to make it easily and rapid- 
ly. A broad smile illumined the president's face, and 
there was a humorous twinkle in his eye. 

" Well, young man," said he, " I hardly think you 
will find in any college a course of study that will 
meet your demand. Whatever may be your calling in 
after life, to make a success of it you will have to give 
it thought, energy and industry." 

This was a very disagreeable revelation to me. Be- 
fore that I had held the idea that only the great, toiling, 
struggling, uneducated masses were compelled to 
labor; that men who were highly educated and held 
positions of power and influence were exempt from 
vexations, labors and worries. When a boy on my 
father's farm, I had envied the " lazy lawyer," as I 
then called him, who, during the long summer days, sat 
in his office far from the reach of the burning rays 
of the noonday sun, and, with a few strokes of his 
pen, earned more money than could be earned in a 
whole month by a man laboring on a farm. At that 
time I did not know that the world is in a state of un- 
rest; that humanity is in a condition of general dis- 
satisfaction; that each one is striving to obtain what 
he has not, and that each considers his lot the hardest ; 
that all are searching for happiness, which few find; 



COLLEGE DAYS 33 

that the farmer desires the leisure of the law office; 
that the lawyer longs for the so-called independence 
of the farm. It is known to all that the labor of the 
physician is often unappreciated and unremunerated ; 
that the lawyer's life is one of arduous study and un- 
tiring work ; that the office-holder and office-seeker are 
the slaves of the people, — at one hour they are sailing 
high on the wave of popularity and public approval; 
at the next they are shipwrecked on the shores of 
slander, defeat and disaster. 

I, for one, little realized that the more exalted the 
positions, the heavier are the burdens and the graver 
are the responsibilities attached to them. I thought 
that those who labored least made the most money, 
lived the best and were freest from the hardships, ills 
and ailments of common humanity. For this reason 
I wished to be educated, that I might be among 
the fortunate ones ! and so I informed the president 
of the state college. If his answer threw a damper 
over my expectations, it did not prevent me from de- 
ciding very promptly that if life was to be one long 
struggle, I would rather fight it with law-books than 
with hay-forks ; therefore, on that day, I determined 
that I would be as good a lawyer as was in my power to 
be, and, at least, please my father in the choice of my 
profession. 

For me, the half-year was a hard one. I had to 
compete with students, who, besides having the best 
of training before they entered, had been in college 
much longer than I had been. I was anxious to stand 
at the head of my classes ; but, as I remember now, I 
did not stand at the head of a single one, although I 
labored hard to that end. In my school experiences at 



34 MY OWN STORY 

home, I had been accustomed to hold a good place in 
all my classes, and it was very painful to me that I 
could not do so then. Still, I finished that term with 
a fairly good class standing. 

At the close of the college year I returned home, 
taught my second school, and went back to college for 
another five months' study. During this term, in spite 
of my aversion to military life. Colonel D. W. Clark, 
a West Point graduate and commandant of the state 
college corps of cadets, made me a corporal in Com- 
pany A. Perhaps whatever merit I possessed as a 
soldier was due to the fact that I was a strict discipli- 
narian; be that as it may, before the end of the five 
months, I was again promoted, this time to the posi- 
tion of sergeant. I stood fairly well in my classes, 
and before May of that year, I had become an active 
member of the Patterson Literary Society. 

I returned to my home at the end of the college year 
and taught, this time in my home district, and went 
back to the state college the following winter. I was 
then promoted to the rank of second lieutenant in my 
old company; and before the end of the college year, 
I had achieved another success; for I was also con- 
sidered by the college boys a fair debater. 

During the month of May, of this year of my college 
life, I was stricken with fever and taken to my home. 
After a prolonged illness I recovered, taught another 
country school, then a subscription school at Boston, 
Kentucky, and again returned to the state college the 
following winter. In June of that year, 1890, I was 
appointed a cadet to the United States Military Acad- 
emy at West Point, New York, and left my home pre- 
paratory to entering the famous school. 



CHAPTER V 

A NEW OUTLOOK 

I journey to West Point — A glimpse of the national capital 
— I prepare for examinations — The ordeal — I enter 
West Point 

All the world knows that West Point is situated on 
the banks of the Hudson River in New York. To at- 
tend this far-famed institution of learning and military- 
training, I began at once my active preparations. By 
this time, my dear mother had become somewhat ac- 
customed to my absence from home. She no longer 
objected to my being at the state college which, 
at most, was not a long distance from home; but she 
little relished my going so far away from her as West 
Point. She was well aware of the fact that I would 
be permitted to return only once in four years and that, 
at the end of this visit, I might be sent farther away, 
possibly to some distant post in the West. My father, 
on the contrary, was willing to relinquish his long- 
cherished hope of seeing me a successful lawyer, if by 
so doing I might enter the Military Academy that had 
produced such men as Sherman, Sheridan, Lee and 
Grant. 

Though my father had no love for war and was al- 
ways a quiet, peaceful citizen, yet, when war seemed 
to him justifiable, whether public or private, he 
was ready for it. In fact, he was always willing to 

35 



36 MY OWN STORY 

defend the honor and dignity of his country. More- 
over, he was wiUing that I should do Hkewise, if occa- 
sion demanded it, and had no objection whatever to my 
preparing myself for it. In my heart, I well knew I 
had little taste for a military career; I should have 
preferred to educate myself for the practice of law. 
But I was poor, and my poverty made it necessary for 
me to provide my own means for securing an educa- 
tion. It was, after all, education I was seeking, 
and, at that time, it seemed to me that it would be no 
mean end to my ambition to obtain this education at 
the expense of the Government and then, eminently 
fitted for the work the Government expected of me 
in return, to take up for my life profession, the calling 
that had been graced by some of the nation's greatest 
men. 

I put behind me, therefore, the impulse to continue 
my preparations for a lawyer's career, and turned my 
face from my mountain home to begin the journey 
that would bring me to West Point and the threshold 
of the new life the Academy would open for me. It 
was about the middle of June that I started eastward. 
My arrangements provided for a few days in Wash- 
ington. I had never seen my country's capital and, 
as I was preparing to enlist myself in the nation's de- 
fense should it ever prove necessary, it was of course 
excusable that I should desire to visit the seat of Gov- 
ernment. 

Congress was in session and I made my way to 
both the Senate and the House. In the former I was 
most impressed with the dignity and apparent idleness 
of the members. One senator was delivering a speech, 
but his associates paid him little heed. Some were 



A NEW OUTLOOK 37 

writing letters, a great many were reading papers, 
others were talking; but no one, it seemed to me, was 
paying the least attention to the oratorical effort of 
the member who held the floor. I could not help 
wondering why the gentleman continued speaking 
when, as it seemed to me, his address could accom- 
plish nothing, falling as it did on a heedless audience. 
I was not then sufficiently versed in politics to know 
that he was speaking for reelection alone, that possibly 
his constituents in some distant state of the Union 
composed his audience, and that to these his remarks 
were addressed. Later, experience taught me that 
the papers friendly to his interests in the state he 
represented would publish his oration in full, carefully 
designating the points where '' thunderous applause 
and prolonged cheers " greeted his periods, even 
though, in fact, the speech was not delivered in full 
and no applause whatever was heard. 

From Washington I journeyed on to New York 
City. Here my eager eyes feasted on many things 
that we did not have at Barboursville — and I make 
this statement with all due respect to Barboursville. 
In the end, however, I felt somewhat out of my ele- 
ment; the bigness of the city, its noise, the roar of 
its traffic, its crowded thoroughfares, its tall buildings, 
dazed me, and I felt no reluctance at leaving when I 
boarded the Mary Pozvell (that, I think, was the 
boat's name) and we put out to midstream in the Hud- 
son, bound for West Point. 

Only ten days intervened before the June exam- 
inations at the Academy, and I determined to make the 
most of the time by entering the training-school 
at Highland Falls, a place some ten miles below West 



38 MY OWN STORY 

Point, where, I thought, if I were extraordinarily 
diHgent, I might refresh my memory somewhat and 
be all the better prepared for the examinations. At 
Highland Falls I found two dozen or more candidates 
for admission to West Point, all looking forward with 
increasing anxiety to the crucial tests that lay ahead 
of them. Many of these had been pursuing a special 
course of study at the place for as long as two years ; 
nearly all of them were exceedingly proficient in the 
branches of study required. In spite of this, however, 
many of them expressed grave doubt as to their ability 
to undergo successfully the exhaustive examinations 
prescribed for entrance into West Point. This 
alarmed me; I had received no special training and 
had not, for years, reviewed any of the branches of 
study specifically mentioned, though I had taught 
many of them. 

During the week or so that followed, I gathered 
much information concerning West Point. I learned, 
for instance, that hazing, as practised by the upper- 
classmen upon the poor plebe during his first year at 
the Academy, was by no means of a mild sort. I was 
bitterly opposed to tyranny of any kind, especially 
to hazing; and I assisted to the best of my ability in 
inducing a half-hundred or more of the candidates 
to organize for mutual protection, pledging ourselves 
to resist any and every form of hazing, should we 
be fortunate enough to gain entrance to the Academy. 

The day of the examinations came, and we who 
were applicants were called upon to appear before 
the board of examiners. We were first examined for 
our physical fitness, and, in this, I had no credits to 
spare. I sufifered much then, and ever since, with 



A NEW OUTLOOK 39 

stomach trouble, and my eyes were weak. Still I suc- 
ceeded in passing. Then followed the mental exami- 
nation, a test that was at once thorough and rigid, but 
scarcely as difficult an ordeal as I had been led to sup- 
pose. The subject in which the applicant's ability was 
put to the severest test was mathematics, while, in other 
branches, the examinations were comparatively easy. 
Two days of hard work were necessary, however, be- 
fore the ordeal was ended and our fates had been writ- 
ten on our examination papers for unraveling by the 
board of review. 

There were in all about one hundred and fifty ap- 
plicants, and at the conclusion of the two days' 
examinations, some were in high spirits and many in 
low. But, before either the hopeful or the despond- 
ent could know with any degree of certainty 
the outcome of the examinations, several days must 
elapse. During this interval we were not idle, neither 
were we permitted to follow our own inclinations. 
On the contrary, we were somewhat a part of the 
institution and its discipline. This fact alone was 
sufficient to subject us to the initiatory processes of 
hazing. I well remember the first command given me 
by an upper-classman ; it came during the dinner 
hour of the first day. Upper-classmen and under- 
classmen, seniors and plebes, were all seated in the 
spacious dining-hall, and, with devouring appetites, 
were rapidly disposing of the food before them. At 
this moment an elastic-footed upper-classman, with 
a frozen look, hurriedly approached me. He did not 
introduce himself. Whoever heard of an upper-class- 
man introducing himself to a plebe or fourth-class- 
man? Such a courtesy is not on record since West 



40 MY OWN STORY 

Point was established. I was in the midst of my meal 
when the cadet reached my side. " Drag in your chin 
and stop slouching here at the table," he said abruptly. 

I was determined to curb both my temper and my 
tongue; therefore I looked at him, smiling, and then 
slowly turned my eyes back to the table and continued 
my dinner without uttering a word or moving a muscle 
that might signify that I had the slightest intention of 
complying with his command. The carelessness of 
my demeanor incensed him. There was a breathless 
stillness in the hall; I looked about me cautiously 
and found many threatening and hostile glances turned 
in my direction. At the same moment, a poor plebe 
at another table was guilty of an audible titter, whether 
at my discomfiture or that of the officer who had 
spoken to me, I do not know. However, he was 
pounced upon with the remark : " Do you dare to 
laugh at the misery of one of your comrades ? " This 
came from a surly-looking upper-classman at his 
table. Still I showed no disposition to obey ; in truth, 
I was rather amused than frightened. The upper- 
classman who had addressed me glowered a moment, 
and turning on his heel, declared : " I will see you 
later. You shall pay dearly for your insolence." And 
I did. 

There were, however, only four days of this anx- 
iety and suspense. The time was devoted, for the 
most part, to " setting-up " exercises and, to no little 
extent, to our " proper " hazing. But the end came 
finally, when those who had taken the examinations 
were summoned to hear the result of the ordeal. We 
were lined up in the area of the barracks where the 
officer in charge announced that those whose names 



1 



A NEW OUTLOOK 41 

he would call should fall out of ranks. Our formation 
was in alphabetical order, those whose names began 
with A standing at the head of the line. As it had 
been announced that the officer would call only the 
names of those who had failed to pass the examina- 
tions, my own anxiety can be readily imagined. I was 
obliged to wait until half the line had been disposed 
of before I could learn my own fate. I shivered 
like one with the ague; my breathing was labored; 
I felt as if life itself depended on my name not being 
called. The B's were reached, the C's passed, and 
slowly the line thinned as the officer approached my 
name. Finally the P's were reached; my suspense 
was intense. Two boys to the left of me fell out. 
Sickened with sadness, the poor fellows turned on 
their heels a-nd walked away. Possibly the fondest 
hopes of their lives had been crushed, but none then 
sought to heal the wounds that must have cut deeply 
into their hearts. The officer continued to call the 
names as indifferently as though no one had been 
made to suffer. My own name did not pass his lips. 
Two men to the right of me were left standing, and 
then the line was again broken by those falling out 
who had failed to pass. 

I had been successful! For a time I could think 
of nothing else. Yet I was fearful that there might 
have been some error, some oversight; that the officer 
might again refer to his list and find he had 
forgotten or neglected to call my name. This anxiety 
remained to harass me until the entire list had been 
read and the last name had been called. Then, fold- 
ing up his paper, the officer announced that those 
remaining in the sadly depleted line were from that 



42 MY OWN STORY 

time on cadets in the United States Military Academy. 
We were ordered to report for duty at the guard- 
house at ten o'clock that day. It is needless to say that 
my feelings of fear, dread and suspense were rapidly 
displaced by joy unrestrained. 

For the few days following we remained in barracks ; 
then the entire cadet body was transferred to the 
summer camp of instruction, and all text-books, for 
the time, were laid aside. 



' 



CHAPTER VI 



SUMMER CAMP 



I Spend the summer in camp — Hazing — I arrest my superior 
officer 

We had no sooner been established in camp than 
it became known generally throughout the whole corps 
of cadets that I had openly announced I would not 
submit to being hazed. This, it was apparent, only 
rriade the enemy all the more determined. Of the 
original number who had pledged themselves to resist 
this petty tyranny, only myself and one other still 
refused to submit to hazing. The others, gradually, 
one by one, ceased to offer further resistance and, in 
the end, became the victims of this upper-class des- 
potism. The result was that Mr. Caldwell, who, I 
think, was from Pennsylvania, and myself were made 
targets for the whole battalion. 

At this time there were probably half a hundred 
forms of hazing practised at the Academy. Among 
them were *' doing double step " ; " chewing stretcher " ; 
" swimming to Newburgh," which consisted in forc- 
ing the plebe to lie flat on the floor of the tent and 
imitate the motions of a swimmer in the water until, 
in the judgment of his tormentors, he had exerted 
energy enough to carry him to the little town of 
Newburgh, one mile up the Hudson from West Point ; 
" sub-Sammy race," which required two plebes, both 

43 



44 MY OWN STORY 

of whom were blindfolded, to feed each other rapidly 
with spoons from a bowl of molasses ; *' chasing pedi- 
gree," which consisted in compelling a plebe to trace 
his ancestry, beginning with his earliest progenitors 
and coming on down through the line until the com- 
mandant's dog and himself were eventually reached. 
Nor were these all ; there were other forms of hazing, 
too numerous to mention, but scarcely less severe. 
To the hazer, resistance was as salt to the roast. 
Imagine, then, the deep interest taken in Mr. Caldwell 
and myself. Nevertheless, we successfully resisted 
all forms of hazing, except, of course, the petty an- 
noyances to which we were constantly submitted while 
in ranks and under the direct command of the upper- 
classmen. It was in our tents at night that the most 
exciting events occurred. This, too, after a day of 
wearying work, many manoeuvers with artillery and no 
end, apparently, of small-arm drill. Usually I was 
almost completely exhausted when the day was done; 
but whether tired or rested, my nightly visitors ap- 
peared with clock-like regularity and indulged them- 
selves in such annoyances as their ingenuity could 
devise. While in camp, each cadet was obliged to 
mount guard three times a week. The guard was 
divided into three reliefs, the first, second and third. 
Guard number one was put on duty at eight o'clock 
in the evening and was relieved at ten o'clock by 
guard number two, while guard number three fol- 
lowed at twelve o'clock and was in turn relieved again 
by guard number one, and so on throughout the night. 
It was while the plebe stood his post on such occa- 
sions as these that he suffered most from the upper- 
classmen. 



SUMMER CAMP 45 

It was the special duty of the guard to protect 
the sleeping camp from the attacks of an imaginary 
enemy, and, at all times, save when stormy weather 
forced them to seek shelter in sentry boxes, they were 
obliged to walk their beats with gun at right shoulder. 
Each sentinel was informed of the regular countersign 
of the night and he was instructed to pass no one who 
could not give the word to his satisfaction. 

One sultry night, in the month of August, while I 
was thus detailed, something very unusual occurred to 
me. The night was quiet and^ as is a habit with me, I 
had lost myself in reflection. I was in truth so 
oblivious of the surroundings and so completely ab- 
sorbed in memories of the past and hopes for the 
future, that I heard no sound — nothing, until I was 
suddenly aware that some one was approaching my 
post. In the uncertain light of the moon, I recognized 
that it was the officer of the day who was advancing. 
Immediately I threw down my gun to the proper posi- 
tion and commanded him to halt. He complied at 
once with the command and I followed it, as is custom- 
ary, with the order to advance and give the counter- 
sign. But here an unexpected difficulty arose. In 
the sudden interruption of my reverie, I had forgotten 
the countersign entirely, nor would any amount of 
mental effort on my part serve to recall it. In vain I 
struggled to remember the all-important word. I 
hoped the officer of the day, in answering my 
challenge, might himself throw out some suggestion 
that would aid me in recalling it. But even if he had 
thus unconsciously come to my rescue I could be by 
no means sure that he would not seek to entrap me by 
giving the wrong word. The officer, who was by this 



46 MY OWN STORY 

time close to me, gave the proper pass, but I failed 
utterly to recognize it. Accordingly I again halted 
and calmly informed him to consider himself under 
arrest. I then called out the corporal of the guard. 

Behold my predicament! A plebe had arrested a 
first-classman ! It was unheard-of, preposterous ; and, 
to make matters worse, I had arrested not only an up- 
per-classman, but my superior officer as well, and, in 
fact, the ranking officer of the cadet corps. The only 
reason I could give for my action was that I had 
forgotten the countersign. What should I say to the 
corporal of the guard ? When he approached I should 
not even be able to recognize the countersign when 
he gave it. Indeed, the situation was not only em- 
barrassing, but decidedly interesting. My knowledge 
of military tactics was not broad at best, and, in the 
confusion caused by my fickle memory, I found all 
the. information I possessed gradually growing more 
and more obscure. 

There was, however, one thing to do — tell the 
truth. Every cadet on entering the Academy is put on 
his honor to do that, no matter what the consequences. 
In a moment the corporal had joined us ; immediately 
I came to " present arms " and addressed him. 

" I have forgotten the countersign," I said simply ; 
" I did not think when the officer of the day gave the 
word ' reikiavic ' that the word was correct, but since 
you have given the same word, I discover my error," 

The speech was brief, but it was all I could say — 
all I had to say. I awaited developments. The cor- 
poral lost no time in administering his reprimand, de- 
claring that I had been guilty of the most reprehensible 
conduct, that I had grossly violated my orders as a 



SUMMER CAMP 47 

sentry and to this offense had added the unsoldier-Hke 
conduct of arresting my superior officer for doing his 
duty. The officer of the day, however, was not so 
severe. He seemed somewhat amused at the whole af- 
fair and only added : '' You must keep strictly within 
the sphere of your duty, sir. I shall have to report you 
for this." This he proceeded to do, and a number of 
demerits necessarily followed. The next day the 
whole camp knew of the occurrence, and the report that 
I had arrested my superior officer only served to add 
to the reputation I had already gained of being a 
" fresh " fourth-classman. 

The summer drilling, swimming, dancing, training 
in the gymnasium, the regularity of my meals, sleep 
and the lack of hard study, had greatly built up my 
constitution, and on getting back to barracks, I felt 
better able to do the year's work, hard though it proved 
to be. 



CHAPTER VII 

AT LAW SCHOOL 

I become a third-classman — My eyesight fails and I am forced 
to leave the Academy — I enter the law school at Val- 
paraiso, Indiana 

After the June examinations, the members of my 
class became third-classmen, and began themselves to 
prepare for the incoming plebes. We were now suf- 
ficiently promoted to be recognized by the upper-class- 
men. Cadets with whom we had come in contact 
every day for a whole year recognized us for the first 
time and called us by our names. It all seemed very 
strange to me. A number of upper-classmen ap- 
proached me upon the subject of hazing, and wanted to 
know if, now the opportunity offered, I would ever 
haze any one. I assured them I never would, and 
discovered then and there for the first time that during 
the trying ordeal through which I had just passed, I 
had had a great deal of sympathy from many of the 
upper-classmen themselves. Let it be said to their 
credit that it is not every cadet who indorses hazing. 
A great many in their hearts disapprove of it. Each 
class expects and demands a certain obedience from 
the class below it; but not over one-third of any class 
makes a business of hazing. After the plebe has been 
promoted to the third class, he is no longer hazed, in 
the strict sense of the word; and he associates, on 

48 



AT LAW SCHOOL 49 

terms of more or less equality, with the members of 
the class above him; but there has previously existed 
such a gulf between the plebes and all upper-classmen 
that it is rather difficult to bridge it over. In fact, 
there is always a distinction among the various classes. 

Successfully past the most trying ordeals of a cadet's 
life at West Point — the hazing period — I felt that I 
was now on the threshold of a pleasant, though by no 
means easy or idle, career. But the plans one makes 
are not so easily carried out as they are conceived. 

Just when I was congratulating myself on the 
outlook for the future, my weak and over-taxed 
eyes failed me, and I was forced to return to my home. 
A two years' rest and treatment partly restored them, 
and, on January first, 1893, I enrolled myself as a 
student of the law department of the Northern Indiana 
Normal School at Valparaiso, Indiana, having ex- 
changed a few letters with its genial and efficient presi- 
dent, Professor H. B. Brown. I began at once to pre- 
pare myself for a career before the bar. It is only 
just to say, however, that my inclination had long 
turned toward politics. Even while at the state college 
I had a natural aversion to the semi-prison life led by 
our soldiers, and longed for freer fields of endeavor. 
Now that I had, at last, entered upon the study of the 
law, I felt satisfied ; it was a gate that led into the green 
pasture of politics. Law and politics, as I viewed them, 
went hand in hand. To adopt the one as a profession, 
meant to enter upon the other as a calling. I had al- 
ways been a close student while at college ; and now 
that I was making special preparation for my chosen 
line of work, it was the more important that I give my 
studies my closest application and my best thought. 



50 MY OWN STORY 

I became a member of the General Debating Society, 
and in all the discussions took an active part. I 
secured membership also in two other debating clubs 
that assembled at night during the week. In this 
way I gained much valuable experience in the field 
of public argument, and, in fact, was well enough liked 
by my fellow students to be elected the first president 
of the Southern Literary Society — an organization 
which had for its primary object the bringing into 
closer contact all the Southern students. 

It was while taking an active part in this movement 
that I met Miss Laura Rawlings. We mildly tiffed 
at first, which is not a bad way of beginning a friend- 
ship. Disagreement is sometimes the flint on which 
the mind strikes fire. We all like flattery, but nothing 
is quite so depressing as continual sentimental adula- 
tion. Miss Rawlings was a member of the vocal 
music class, to which I soon attached myself, and also 
of the literary society ; so we were, necessarily, thrown 
much together; and where opportunity was lacking, I 
provided it. After the first little bout our acquaint- 
ance was most pleasant and interesting ; and, as our in- 
timacy grew, and as I found that her gifts of mind and 
heart equaled her beauty and charm of manner, it is 
needless to say that this year at Valparaiso was the 
happiest collegiate year of my life. When the month 
of June came. Miss Rawlings returned to her home at 
Burning Springs, Kentucky; I remained at Val- 
paraiso, intending to pursue my legal studies in a special 
class during the summer months and to devote myself 
to some branches of history and literature. But when 
we parted we were betrothed. 

I had scarcely begun preparation for my summer's 




My mother, Mrs. Elizabeth Powers My father, Amos Powers 

My brother, Captain John L. Powers 

Myself at twenty-four, and Miss Laura Rawlings, My sister, Mrs. Rebecca Green 

whom I afterwards married 

MEMBERS OF MV FAMILY 



AT LAW SCHOOL 51 

work, however, when I learned that, by reason of 
the adoption of the new constitution for Kentucky, 
superintendents of pubHc schools were to be elected 
that year in every county in the state. For some time 
past I had intended, when the office was again to be 
filled, to enter the race for it in my home county. 
Therefore, I went home immediately and entered the 
race for the nomination on the Republican ticket. I 
had two opponents in the struggle for the nomination 
— Professor James P. Faulkner, now president of 
Union College, at Barboursville, and the Reverend 
Frank Hopkins, a Methodist minister of some reputa- 
tion and considerable ability. I had been away at col- 
lege for several years, knew but a small per cent, of 
the voters of the county, and was poorly prepared to 
play the uncertain game of politics with much chance 
of success. 

I knew, but not intimately, most of the prominent 
people of Barboursville, and a few of them were warm 
personal friends of mine; but the majority of them had 
no reason to feel any particular interest in my candi- 
dacy. I had, however, become fairly well acquainted 
with the teaching corps of the county ; had taken an 
active part in two or three county institutes ; and had as 
many friends among them as any of my opponents, 
but had no relatives, either by marriage or blood, to 
give me a following in the county. Many of my 
mother's relatives lived then, as they do now, in the 
county of Whitley. My father had but one brother, 
and he was not a resident of Knox County. I was 
then twenty-four years of age, just old enough, accord- 
ing to the Kentucky statutes, to fill the office of super- 
intendent of schools. 



CHAPTER VIII 

MY FIRST POLITICAL CAMPAIGN 

I am a candidate for the office of superintendent of schools 
of Knox County, Kentucky — I make a canvass of the 
mountain districts — I take part in joint debates — I am 
graduated from law school and elected to office 

The campaign work that I now began was not the 
first in which I had been engaged. On the contrary, 
when I was but eighteen years of age, I had gone to 
Whitley County to assist in securing the nomination 
of my cousin, Thomas Bennett, for the office of sheriff. 
I had, in fact, met his opponent in the race, Mr. Madi- 
son Moore, in joint debate. But this was my first 
work in my own behalf. To say that I entered upon 
it with some anxiety is to put it mildly, indeed. 
However, I was not blind to the influences and senti- 
ment I was about to combat. 

I knew, for instance, that my boyish appearance was 
one of the disadvantages which I should be obliged to 
labor against in this campaign. Like David Copper- 
field in the early part of his career, I was constantly 
made to feel that I was exceedingly young. To offset 
this in part, I began my canvass for votes in that par- 
ticular part of the county reported to be the least pro- 
gressive. Here, I thought, my appearance would 
not be greatly against me, while at the same time I 
should gain experience and knowledge that would 



MY FIRST POLITICAL CAMPAIGN 53 

stand me in good stead in places where my youth might 
work to my detriment. Moreover, whatever errors and 
blunders I might make in my new field of labor I de- 
sired to keep, as Bill Nye kept his practice of the 
law, " as quiet as possible." It took about three weeks' 
daily riding to cover the territory. No hill was too 
high to be crossed, no creek or stream too long to be 
followed. 

I had little difficulty in adapting myself to the con- 
ditions and environment of those with whom I came in 
contact, from the fact that I had been reared in that 
part of the country myself, and was without any super- 
fluity of the luxuries of life. I was one of the great 
common people; I knew their tastes, desires, preju- 
dices, and objects in life. The farmer and his crops, 
the blacksmith and his trade, the lumberman and his 
logs, were all familiar to me. All my interest was 
with them. I knew the meaning of daily toil and had 
felt the pangs of poverty. 

In my tour over the county, I resorted to various 
little oddities which suggested themselves to my mind. 
I remember, upon one occasion, that I rode up to a 
little cabin — far up a long and lonesome stream. 
It was situated at the base of a great mountain side, 
which was covered with timber and filled with coal. 
It was late in the afternoon of a summer day; the 
shadows of the mountain had long since stolen over 
that quiet abode. The young wife, who had just blos- 
somed into womanhood, was singing a weird melody 
when I approached the humble home. When she 
noticed me the music ceased, and she came timidly to 
the door. She lived in one of those out-of-the-way 
localities where the voice of the stranger is seldom 



54 MY OWN STORY 

heard. For a moment she was ill at ease; but her 
large, fine, blue eyes, beneath a well-formed and beau- 
tiful brow, sparkled with native intelligence. She was 
one of the many in th^t section of the state possessing 
inborn ability, who, for lack of opportunity, were liv- 
ing lives of penury and obscurity. 

It was easy to see that she was of a sunny dispo- 
sition, with a fine sense of humor ; so I felt that what- 
ever I said would be received in the spirit in which 
it was intended. I asked the young woman if her 
father was at home. She smiled with a proud sense 
of possession, and told me that her father lived across 
the county, but that her husband would be home soon. 
I then told her my business, and left her with the 
injunction to tell him when he returned that the home- 
liest man north of the equator had called to see him 
that day and wanted his support in the coming precinct 
convention. I had remained on my horse, so, after 
explaining my mission, I bade her adieu, and pulled 
the reins of my bridle, preparatory to leaving the cozily- 
kept cabin and its happy inmate. She laughed aloud 
at my message to her husband, but detained me to say 
that he would not know who desired his support. With 
the reminder that the description I had left of myself 
would be sufficient to identify me, I rode away. She 
stood in the doorway looking after me and, no doubt, 
wondering what manner of man she had met. 

In the meantime, the people were calling me *' a 
kid," ". a boy " and " young Powers." The Republican 
county committee had held no meeting, and had made 
no arrangement by which the nomination should be 
made. It was important, therefore, for me to arrange 
matters so that the people who knew me best would 



MY FIRST POLITICAL CAMPAIGN 55 

speak first as to my character and fitness for the posi- 
tion I sought. With this as one of the objects in view, 
I entered into negotiations with my opponents. I suc- 
ceeded in making satisfactory arrangements with them 
for the first convention to be held in Poplar Creek 
voting precinct, where I had taught my first public 
school. When the voting lines were drawn up and 
counted, three-fourths of the voters present had voted 
for me. 

The next convention was held in Brush Creek pre- 
cinct, in which my father had lived for more than 
twelve years. There were about one hundred voters 
present. After the speech-making, our lines were 
formed, or rather the lines of my opponents failed to 
form. I did not lose a single vote. I never felt quite 
so happy in my life. To see the people among whom 
I had been reared stand as one man for my nomination 
filled my heart with lasting gratitude. The people of 
my home had spoken. I knew their voices would be 
heard throughout the county. 

After visiting all the voting precincts in the coun- 
ty except Barboursville, I had more delegates to the 
general convention to be held there than both of my 
opponents combined. It was not wholly without reason 
then that, before holding the precinct convention in 
Barboursville, both my opponents withdrew from the 
race, and I was nominated by acclamation. 

I had won. My suspense was over. My friends 
were enthusiastic, and, of course, called for a speech. 
In a few words, I tried to express my gratitude for the 
honor conferred upon me and for the number and the 
loyalty of my supporters as well as for the services 
they had so kindly rendered me. I assured them that 



56 MY OWN STORY 

if the opportunity ever offered I would serve them 
with the same fidehty with which they had served me. 

Though the county was RepubHcan, there had not 
been a Repubhcan superintendent of schools in Knox 
County for a quarter of a century. All had been Demo- 
crats. There had also been Democrats elected to the 
other offices from time to time, for many years. Party 
lines had never been tightly drawn and a great many 
voters had insisted on voting for what they called the 
" best man." 

In due time, John T. Hays of Barboursville, nephew 
of Napoleon B. Hays, afterward attorney-general 
under Governor Beckham, a well-educated man and a 
lawyer of no mean ability, announced his candidacy 
for the office of superintendent of schools. He was, 
and is, a partizan Democrat, but on this occasion ran 
an independent race. He selected his own device, and 
maintained that the office was non-political ; that educa- 
tional qualification and general fitness for the position 
were all that were necessary for a candidate to possess ; 
that politics was not taught in our public schools, and 
should not be, and, therefore, should not influence the 
county superintendent in the discharge of the duties of 
the office. 

About two weeks before the election, Mr. Hays and 
I arranged a series of joint debates, or rather I ar- 
ranged the debates and places of speaking and invited 
him to meet me — an invitation which he accepted. 
He is an aggressive and forceful man, but not an elo- 
quent speaker. It was to my advantage to introduce 
politics into our discussion as often as possible, while 
it was to his advantage to keep away from the subject. 
He tried, naturally, to force me from the realms of 



MY FIRST POLITICAL CAMPAIGN 57 

politics into those of education ; and in turn I tried to 
force him into the discussion of poHtics as well as of 
education. 

On November eighteenth, 1892, soon after Mr. 
Cleveland had been elected President of the United 
States, the Democrats of Knox County, celebrating 
their victory, had dragged a dead racoon through the 
bonfire-lighted streets of Barboursville. The leader of 
the torch-light parade, in a burst of oratorical enthu- 
siasm, had declared that the whole world had gone 
Democratic, except the state of Ohio, hell, and Knox 
County; and a good brother in the audience, with his 
hand upon his heart, asserted that they would carry 
all of them next time. The Republicans of Knox 
County remembered this occasion and also how liberal 
they had been in dividing offices with the Demo- 
crats. I recalled these facts to those who might 
have forgotten them, and informed my opponent that 
for the supremacy over one of the places mentioned 
by his enthusiastic supporter, after the election of 
November, 1892, the Republicans of Knox County 
would make no contest; but in the state of Ohio and 
the county of Knox, the Republicans intended to 
manage public affairs. My opponent, however, felt 
equally confident of victory, and showed it both in 
demeanor and speech on the day before election. 

At this time I ascertained, to a certainty, that my 
name did not appear on the ballots. The county clerk 
was a cousin of my opponent and had permitted him- 
self to be influenced by Mr. Hays' supporters. When 
I arrived in Barboursville from Poplar Creek voting 
precinct, my friends had reached a decision as to what 
should be done in the premises, and were then drawing 



58 MY OWN STORY 

up instructions to be signed by the county chairman, 
setting forth a section of the election law to the effect 
that I could still be voted for by every voter writing my 
name on the ballot ; and in addition were directing that 
the election officers in the respective precincts should 
allow qualified voters to vote for any citizen they de- 
sired, by so writing his name in the proper place on the 
ballot. These instructions were signed by the county 
chairman, and were carried to every voting precinct 
in the county. 

When the polls opened the next morning, the election 
officers of the various voting precincts, half of whom 
were Democrats, were found to have been supplied, by 
the friends of Mr. Hays, with copies of the new elec- 
tion law, with certain isolated passages marked. 
These, if strictly construed, would have been a bar to 
my receiving any votes on that day. The passages 
were underscored with pen and ink. It was with 
these mutilated portions of the law that the Democratic 
election officers intended, and in many instances tried, 
to prevent my friends from voting. Adding insult to 
injury was more than peace-abiding citizens would 
endure without some demonstration of disapproval, 
and especially was this true when the injury aimed 
at robbing them of the sacred right of suffrage. The 
Republicans of Knox County were boiling with in- 
dignation. Their liberty was at stake, and they were 
ready to defend it. In every precinct in the county 
where there was resistance to qualified freemen cast- 
ing their votes, determined men fought to overcome it. 
Many of the Democrats were outspoken in their de- 
nunciation of the attempted theft. All day my name 
was written by the liberty-loving voters of the county, 



MY FIRST POLITICAL CAMPAIGN 59 

and, when the polls closed, my majority was six hun- 
dred and fifty. Under the circumstances I had not 
expected it to be so large. In a few days the board 
canvassed the returns of the election and finally issued 
to me a certificate of election. This was in Novem- 
ber, 1893 ; but my predecessor's term of office did not 
expire until August, 1894. 

As I was extremely anxious to complete my course 
in law before bidding good-by to my college days, I 
hastened back to Valparaiso to accomplish that end, 
if possible. My classmates had heard of my victory 
and gave me a hearty reception upon my return. I met 
a great many friends in wandering about the old 
haunts. Miss Rawlings, with whom I had spent so 
many pleasant hours, was not there ; but she soon re- 
turned to reenter college. I had been successful in my 
race for superintendent of schools, was progressing 
nicely with my legal studies, and now was with my be- 
trothed often. I had good reason to be happy. I 
joined a debating society or two; was often a visitor to 
others, and took great interest in parliamentary law. 
The Southern Literary Society flourished, and its mem- 
bers derived much pleasure from its social features. 
The General Debating Society continued to flourish 
as before, and I took an active part in its proceed- 
ings also. 

I was very fond of my study of the law, and, as is 
usually the case when one's interest is aroused, stood' 
well in my class. When graduation day came, after 
many farewells, I left for Barboursville, Kentucky, to 
take charge of the office to which I had been elected 
and to begin the practice of my profession. I was 
admitted to the bar at the July term of the Knox circuit 



6o MY OWN STORY 

court, 1894; and formally took charge of the educa- 
tional interests of the county the thirteenth of the fol- 
lowing August. I entered at once into active school 
work, which I soon found was beset with many 
difficulties. 



CHAPTER IX' 

MARRIAGE 

Responsibility of office — I begin to practise law — My mar- 
riage — The sudden death of my wife 

One who has never had the good, or bad, fortune, 
however it may be regarded, of being a public servant, 
can never understand just what it means to deal with 
the public. But from experience I can say that the 
task is particularly burdensome when that servant is 
superintendent of public schools in any county in Ken- 
tucky. This may be equally true in other states, but I 
can only speak of my own. The work of a teacher 
seems to me to come nearer being divinely noble than 
any other work performed by one human being for an- 
other. To take a young, pliable intellect, uninformed 
and unaroused, and breathe into it the desire to know, 
train it for the intellectual contest of life, inspire it with 
lofty- motives, prepare it for great duties and grave 
responsibilities, is almost a divine calling; and on the 
shoulders of him who commissions those who teach, 
the responsibilities are all the greater. 

All this time I found myself becoming more firmly 
intrenched in my determination to practise law. I con- 
tinued to be a very diligent student, but with all my 
diligence and study I knew very little about the actual 
practice of my profession. I had " hung out my 
shingle," but it did not prove to be a very catching 

6i 



62 MY OWN STORY 

card. At any rate my clients, like angels' visits, were 
few and far between. A great many consulted me, but 
few employed me. To these I was often tempted to 
say what Mr. Alva N. Cade of Illinois, a member of 
my class at Valparaiso, said to the genial professor, 
Mark L. DeMotte, dean of the law department. Pro- 
fessor DeMotte asked him what he would say to a client 
who presented to him a certain series of facts in a 
case, as related by the professor. Mr. Cade hung his 
head in puzzled meditation for a moment. Then, with 
the celerity of a gust of wind, he replied : " I would 
advise him to consult a lawyer." 

In the cases in which I was employed, I met with 
reasonable success. I made it a rule never to take a 
civil case unless I believed the law to be on the side of 
my client; but in criminal cases I tried to do what I 
could for nearly all who came to me for assistance. 
I was particularly fond of the law, and found 
both the office work and the work in the court-room 
very congenial, and longed for the time when I could 
devote my whole attention to the profession. Perhaps 
the greatest proof I can give of my disinterested love 
of my work is the fact that I loved it for itself, and not 
alone for the money I could make by its practice. I 
studied because I wanted to know the law. Continued 
dabbling in politics, however, proved in the end to be 
even more fascinating to me than the law. 

During these months my admiration and affection 
for Miss Laura Rawlings, to whom I had been en- 
gaged for some time, still grew; and on January 
twenty-second, 1896, we were married. I had bought 
a home in Barboursville some time before, and in a few 
months after our marriage we there took up our resi- 



MARRIAGE 63 

dence. If supreme happiness ever belonged to earthly 
beings, it was ours. We both agreed and feared, how- 
ever, that it was too perfect to last. The thought was 
prophetic, but the end of our bliss came in a way little 
anticipated. 

My young wife, without the slightest warning, was 
stricken with that deadly disease, cerebro-spinal men- 
ingitis ; and, in spite of previous perfect health and 
unusual strength, she succumbed after a month's awful 
struggle, during which time there were few moments 
of consciousness. She died at my father's home, on 
July twenty-sixth, of the same year we were married. 
The fondest hopes of my life were blasted. What had 
seemed troubles before now ceased to exist. A great 
sorrow sinks all minor annoyances into oblivion, and 
for a time, indeed for all time, grants a respite from all 
petty, trivial cares. 

Usually the instinct of a human heart is to draw the 
veil of silence over such grief as then was mine, but, 
by a strange chain of subsequent circumstances, even 
the most cherished feelings of my heart have, to an 
extent, fallen into the hands of the public. Such being 
the case, my version of the different episodes of my life 
will, perhaps, be as acceptable from my pen as from 
that of another. If, then, it comforts me to pay a 
tribute to that pure, devoted young wife who, during 
the few months she was left with me, commanded the 
highest admiration and the tenderest devotion of which 
my nature was capable, I feel that it would be dis- 
loyal to her sweet memory to remain silent, from the 
fear that I might be accused of " wearing my heart 
upon my sleeve for daws to peck at." 

I do not, then, hesitate to speak of the perfection of 



64 MY OWN STORY 

her character, the brightness of her intellect, her per- 
sonal beauty and the purity of her soul. As men judge 
all women by those with whom they have been most 
intimately connected, my ideal is a high one. While not 
a member of any church, my wife was a Baptist, and 
was possessed of a beautiful Christian spirit. I do not 
hesitate to say that when my wife died even death 
itself held no terrors for me. What is this world but 
a graveyard of buried dreams? My wife hes in the 
cemetery at Barboursville, and upon the slab that 
marks her grave are a few words, telling simply what 
we were to each other. Like Robert Browning after 
the death of Elizabeth Browning, I faced echoing 
rooms of my desolate home, while my heart cried, '' I 
want her, I want her." 

As time went on, and as the first keen edge of my 
grief wore off, I felt the necessity of directing my life 
into some more natural and less morbid channel. I 
turned again to my work, and threw myself into it 
more zealously than I had ever done before. I had a 
double object in view : first, to divert my mind from 
my grief, and keep it so fully occupied that I should 
have no time to brood ; and, second, believing that my 
days of social and domestic happiness were at an end, 
I determined that disaster should not overwhelm me 
on every road, and that my life, as far as it was in my 
power to make it so, should not be a failure from a 
business standpoint. " The sure cure for all private 
griefs is a hearty interest in public affairs," said Burke. 
I tried to profit by his philosophy and, therefore, kept 
every hour in the day occupied with the study and prac- 
tice of law and with my duties as school superintendent, 
except such times as I set apart for exercise and sleep. 




My boyhood home on Brush Creek 

Court-house at Barboursville, where I began the practice 
of law in 1894. The cross indicates the office I 
occupied as Superintendent of Schools 

My home in Barboursville during my brief married life 
IN MY EARLIER DAYS 



MARRIAGE 65 

I took my daily walks with as much regularity as I took 
my meals. I found this essential to my health, which 
I had foolishly impaired by overwork at college. 

I have never married again. While it is doubtless 
true that the human heart can more easily love when 
its depths have once been sounded, still it is further 
true that arduous labor, intense thought and weighty 
burdens require such a concentration and taxation of 
one's energy that there is little left for the soft senti- 
ments of love, and a man must admit that after he 
nears the age of thirty, he becomes more parsimonious 
of his affections. 



CHAPTER X 

AGAINST ODDS 

I am again a successful candidate — I take a post-graduate 
course in law at Center College, Danville — Stump- 
speaking 

The first of the year of 1897 found me again hotly 
campaigning for the nomination for superintendent 
of public schools of Knox County. Being a Ken- 
tuckian, I naturally desired to succeed myself in office. 
Mr. E. B. Hemphill, whose father was ex-sheriff of 
the county, was, intellectually, the most gifted of my 
opponents. Mr. A. A. Hopkins, " another Rich- 
mond in the field," was a brother of the gentleman who 
had been my opponent in the first race for the nomi- 
nation, and was developing a great deal of strength 
because of the defeat of his brother a few years before. 
My other opponent, Mr. Thomas C. Jarvis, was a son 
of ex-Representative John D. Jarvis, and also a nephew 
of Henderson Jarvis, who was the sheriff of Knox 
County at that time. He was related also to some of 
the most wealthy and influential families. 

Later in the canvass, my opponents pooled their 
strength, and Mr. Jarvis and I fought the fight to a 
finish. It was a hard struggle, but I won. During my 
term of office, I had settled a number of school dis- 
putes, had rendered a great many opinions in contested 
cases, had refused teachers' certificates to about half 
the applicants, had condemned several school-houses as 

66 



AGAINST ODDS 6^ 

being unfit for use, had condemned the furniture of 
nearly all of the others, had changed the boundaries 
in several of the school-districts and had refused to 
change them in others, had selected sites for a few 
school-houses, had appointed several trustees and had 
refused to appoint others, had sat as judge in cases 
where charges were made against trustees and teach- 
ers for immoral conduct, or for failure to perform 
their duties, and in a great many ways too numerous 
to mention I had, in my official capacity, taken action, 
which, as a matter of course, was adverse to some. 
These, it is needless to say, had a host of followers. 
Many of them had formerly voted for me, and felt that 
they should be rewarded. Their bitterness, therefore, 
was intense when I failed to carry out their expecta- 
tions. I had, if their own words can be relied upon, 
proved " disloyal, ungrateful, and untrue " to them. 

Many of the patrons claimed that they had been un- 
necessarily " taxed to death," and that I was the cause 
of it. In support of their argument, they cited the fact 
that, in their school-days, they used split poles and rails 
for seats. They said that the school-buildings con- 
demned by me were better than the homes of some of 
the tax-payers. In truth, against my policy of im- 
provement came protests loud and long. Men are 
prone to revile that which benefits them most. The 
" back-number " teachers, who had failed to pass the 
examination for teachers' certificates, with their fath- 
ers, mothers, sisters, brothers, uncles, aunts, cousins 
and other relatives, and their friends, lined up in a solid 
phalanx against me. The dissatisfied and disappointed, 
who were many, pledged themselves to compass my 
defeat. Independence and self-reliance are the traits 



68 MY OWN STORY 

that have brought me into collision with other men. 
They have made me ardently loved and ardently hated. 
Taking into consideration all the forces with which I 
had to contend, my nomination was a signal political 
victory. It was the only county office whose incum- 
bent succeeded in being renominated. Four out of the 
five magistrates, who also attempted to be renomi- 
nated, were defeated. It was a year of rotation 
in office. 

Naturally I expected opposition in the final election, 
and on this I was not disappointed. Professor Lee 
Pope, who had recently been graduated at the state 
college, Kentucky, and who had carried oif the highest 
honors of his class, was put forth by the Democrats 
and the dissatisfied Republicans to oppose me. Never- 
theless, I won by a handsome majority. 

After the election I found myself worn out by cam- 
paigns, overwork in office and school difficulties. At 
times before this when the worries of office had 
become particularly depressing, I had made it a habit 
to stroll into the woods, where it seemed the burden 
would be lifted, and I should be able to forget my 
worries. It is best always to live in eternal sun- 
shine and let the clouds gather where they will. 
The sweetest hours of the infinitesimal space of 
time allowed each human being from the measureless 
eternity are those spent in the solitude of the forest, 
God's first temple, where one may feel a brotherhood 
with the trees, the birds, and the bees. But I am about 
to forget that the ideas of pleasure of no two men are 
the same, and that every one's conception of it changes 
from time to time. . I now longed for college life again, 
and accordingly made arrangements with Judge John 



AGAINST ODDS 69 

H. Davis, of Barboursville, to stay in my office, and 
attend to all matters concerning the schools that did not 
demand official attention, sending me an account of all 
those matters to which I could attend at a distance. 
I took a post-graduate course in law at Center College, 
Kentucky, which I found to be a most profitable one. 
My brother, John L. Powers, was graduated in the 
same class. I longed to be a good lawyer, and during 
this term I learned and understood the law as I never 
had before. I had the good fortune to be under the 
direct tutorage of ex-Governor J. Proctor Knott, of 
Duluth fame, one of the brainiest men the state has ever 
produced. He was our principal instructor in law. 
His comprehensive and analytical mind, his ever-ready 
wit and humor, his profound and exhaustive informa- 
tion on so many branches of learning, his unusual clear- 
ness and force in imparting his ideas, and in explaining 
the doctrine he desired to propound, made him a mas- 
ter in a professor's chair; and, although he has held 
many public positions of honor and trust, calling for 
the utmost fidelity and efficiency, I doubt whether his 
success in any one of these was greater than in the 
position of college professor. 

I had, I believe, the honor of being one of his favor- 
ite pupils. After recreation hour it was often my pleas- 
ure and privilege to walk with him to his home. In 
the talks which we had on these and other occasions, 
he encouraged me in my work, and it greatly gratified 
me to have encouragement from such a source. As it 
was the height of my ambition to make just such a 
lawyer as he, I made as thorough a study of my pro- 
fessor as my opportunities allowed, delving, as far as 
I could, into the secret of his success. In June, 1898, 



70 MY OWN STORY 

after my post-graduation at Danville, I returned to 
my home at Barboursville to resume the duties of my 
office and to enter actively into the practice of my 
profession. I continued to read law closely and my 
clientage increased. It was, too, a relief to find that 
the school duties were less onerous. Not only had I 
become familiar with my duties as superintendent, but 
the educational outlook in the county was growing 
brighter every year. Locally I had developed into an 
active politician and political campaigner. I was much 
in evidence on the " raging stump " in the campaigns 
of '95, '96, '97 and '98. Incidentally, I was looking 
out for broader fields in which to achieve political 
success. 



CHAPTER XI 

THE KENTUCKY PROBLEM 

Affairs in Kentucky in 1899 — The Goebel Election Law — 
Opinion of Henry Watterson — The effort of the Demo- 
crats to have the law declared constitutional — The outlook 
for Democratic success in the campaign of 1899 

That the full force of the gubernatorial campaign 
of 1899 may be fully comprehended by those not con- 
versant with the local situation, I shall briefly review 
the political state of affairs in Kentucky a few years 
prior to that date. 

In 1895, for the first time in the history of the state, 
the Republican party elected a governor and the full 
state ticket by a plurality of eight thousand nine hun- 
dred and twelve. The Republican forces in the cam- 
paign which led to this victory were headed by William 
O'Connell Bradley, the most adroit and popular leader, 
perhaps, the Republicans ever had in Kentucky. 
Bradley had led the Republican hosts before. Respon- 
sibilities naturally gravitate to those willing and able 
to shoulder them. Power comes to those who can do 
things. The money question in the local campaign of 
'95 divided the Democratic party. General P. Watt 
Hardin was nominated for governor by the Democrats 
of the state on a sound-money platform ; but, on his 
first joint debate with Bradley in Louisville, he was 
forced to take a position, and declared for free silver. 

71 



72 MY OWN STORY 

A free-silver man running upon a gold platform was 
a situation so unfortunate that it served, together with 
the persistent charge by the Republicans that the Demo- 
cratic leaders had long mismanaged state affairs, to 
cause apathy and alienation in the rank and file of the 
Democracy. The result was the election of the entire 
Republican ticket. 

That the Republican party should gain control and 
assume the management of state affairs was a bitter 
morsel in the mouth of Kentucky Democracy, which 
had, up to that time, represented Kentucky's aris- 
tocracy. The leaders of the free-silver wing of the 
party began to revolve in their fertile brains some plan 
to prevent such another " calamity " and " disgrace to 
the state," and incidentally, to pave the road to their 
own future political fortune. How often the selfish 
desire to govern is paraded as righteous zeal in the 
cause of oppressed humanity! The plan finally 
adopted, conceived to secure for themselves the loaves 
and fishes, culminated in the notorious election bill, 
adopted over the veto of Governor Bradley in 
1898, known as the Goebel Election Law. It came 
by its name through the fact that Senator William 
Goebel — a Pennsylvanian by birth, but representing 
the county of Kenton in the Senate of Kentucky, the 
state of his adoption — presented the bill and was the 
master-spirit in forcing it through both branches of the 
Legislature. The Goebel bill originated in the Senate, 
and when it reached the House for consideration, there 
was strong opposition to its passage among Democratic 
members. A Democratic caucus was held, the party 
lash applied and the bill became a law, but not with- 
out much ill-feeling in the Democratic ranks. 




WILLIAM GOEBEL 



THE KENTUCKY PROBLEM 73 

Governor Bradley said of the bill, in his veto : 
" Clothed with both judicial and ministerial functions, 
having no legislative attributes, it, nevertheless, stands 
out in bold relief, the creature of the Legislature beyond 
the control of the courts and juries, a supreme power 
of the state, and the absolute master of the people." 
Henry Watterson said of it, in the Courier- Journal: 
" Goebel follows out his own ambitions in desiring to 
become governor of Kentucky, and he sees, or thinks 
he sees, a ready chariot thither in the electoral bill that 
bears his name." 

The Goebel Election Law seized the key to the elec- 
tion machinery throughout the state. It provided that 
three men, to be elected by the Democratic Legislature, 
were to compose the state board of election commis- 
sioners. It provided, also, that this board, as well as 
an election board in each county of the state, which 
the state board had the power to appoint and remove at 
its pleasure, should act in a dual capacity. In their 
ministerial capacity they tabulated the returns of the 
election and issued certificates thereon; and in their ju- 
dicial capacity they sat as a court to pass upon the fair- 
ness and honesty of their former actions in declaring 
their friends elected. The new law further provided 
that the decision of the state election board should be 
final and conclusive, and, therefore, not subject to re- 
view by any other court, inferior or superior. The 
election commissioners were to be under no bond to dis- 
charge their duties honestly and justly. Consequently 
no civil suit for damages could be brought against them 
in their official capacity by any injured litigant. This 
bold measure failed to provide for any punishment to be 
inflicted upon the members of the board for what might 



74 . MY OWN STORY 

be found to be the grossest or most flagrant violation 
of their sworn duty. Under its provisions, they 
were therefore immune from criminal prosecution. 
Such is the gist of this famous election law. 

At the bidding of Senator Goebel, the Legislature 
named Judge W. S. Pryor, Captain W. T. Ellis and 
C. B. Poyntz, all Democrats, as members of the state 
election board. This board appointed an election board 
in each county of the state, a majority of whose mem- 
bers were Democrats and likewise Goebel's friends. The 
various county boards in turn had the power to appoint 
and remove at their pleasure the precinct election offi- 
cers in each voting precinct in every county in the state. 
Some of these were to be Republicans, but in all matters 
touching the suffrage of the citizen the Democrats had 
the deciding vote. Such a law, it is obvious, was 
nothing short of legalized brigandage. Under its 
plenary provisions for theft and wrong the schemes of 
cunning politicians began to evolve rapidly. The 
Honorable South Trimble, now a Democratic congress- 
man from Kentucky, wrote to Ben Marshall, a fellow 
Democrat and a member of the Franklin County board 
of election commissioners, his idea of procedure in 
these words : " Our county is all right, but city elec- 
tions can not be won with a fair count. Incompetent, 
unreliable Republican judges will have to be ap- 
pointed." 

The Republicans realized the danger lurking in the 
new election law. The Democrats feared it was not 
constitutional ; and in order to have that question set- 
tled and the law declared valid, if possible, while the 
court of appeals was Democratic, an agreed suit, styled 
Purnell vs. Mann, was filed in Judge James E. Can- 



THE KENTUCKY PROBLEM 75 

trill's court. This suit was between certain Demo- 
cratic office-holders and the Democratic County Elec- 
tion Commissioners of Bourbon County. Judge Can- 
trill decided that the law was constitutional. The case 
finally reached the court of appeals where, on a 
strict party vote of four to three, the law was declared 
to be valid. The Republicans were downcast. The 
outlook for fairness in future elections was almost 
hopeless. 

In the congressional election of 1898, the Republi- 
cans lost heavily, electing only two congressmen, 
whereas in 1896 they had elected five out of eleven. 
The election, however, passed off without excitement 
or friction, and the friends of the Goebel Election Law 
claimed complete exoneration of the charges made 
against it. 

Mr. Goebel had become widely known by reason of 
the fierce opposition to the election law that bore his 
name. Strong men are often advertised more exten- 
sively by the denunciation of rabid enemies than by the 
praise of loving friends. This notoriety enhanced 
Senator Goebel's chances for the gubernatorial nomi- 
nation ; so he declared himself a candidate and entered 
actively into the campaign. General P. Watt Hardin 
and Captain W. J. Stone also entered the race. 

The outlook for Democratic success in 1899 was 
flattering. Since '96 the state had swung back into the 
Democratic column, electing a Democratic clerk of the 
court of appeals by nearly twenty thousand plurality. 
This was a great reversal of the Republican victories 
of Bradley in 1895, and McKinley in 1896. The indi- 
cations were that the state had swung back into Demo- 
cratic ranks for years perhaps, and that the independent 



^(i MY OWN STORY 

Democrats, who had won the race for Bradley and 
carried the state for McKinley, had gone back to the 
" house of their fathers." 

The three-cornered fight for the nomination for 
governor became intensely interesting. There were no 
joint debates between the aspirants for gubernator- 
ial honors. They all declared for free silver, and each 
confined himself to questioning the record of the other 
as to his loyalty to the silver cause. It was finally 
decided to hold county and legislative district mass- 
meetings for the purpose of selecting delegates to the 
state convention. These mass-meetings were marked 
by factional fights and contesting delegations. How- 
ever, delegates were eventually selected to assemble 
in state convention and, by ballot, as usual, select the 
party's standard-bearers, naming the candidates for all 
state offices. 



CHAPTER XII 

THE DEMOCRATIC MACHINE 

The Democratic state convention at Music Hall, Louisville — 
Many contesting delegations — Excitement over the tem- 
porary chairman's decision — Bailiffs fail to preserve order 
— Election of Redwine as permanent chairman — Machine 
work — Stone proposes terms 

The Democratic state convention was called to meet 
in Louisville, on the twenty-first of June. After the 
smoke of battle at the county conventions had cleared 
away, it was discovered that Hardin was in the lead, 
claiming about six hundred of the total one thousand 
and ninety-one delegates. Stone claimed three hun- 
dred and fifty, Goebel about three hundred. Major 
P. P. Johnston, chairman of the state central commit- 
tee, who was opposed to Goebel, called the convention 
to order in Music Hall at the appointed time, and pro- 
ceeded to conduct the preliminaries of the temporary 
organization. 

The Stone-Goebel forces immediately nominated 
Judge D. B. Redwine, of Breathitt County, for perma- 
nent chairman of the convention, and the Hardin men 
named W. H. Sweeney, of Marion County, for the 
same position. Chairman Johnston ordered the call of 
the counties, and the balloting began. 

Scarcely had the secretary begun the call of the 
counties before it was discovered that one of them had 

17 



78 MY OWN STORY 

sent a double delegation to the convention, each set of 
delegates claiming to be the legal and regularly con- 
stituted one. The chairman passed the irregularly 
represented county and, as the call of the counties was 
continued, there were found to be numerous other con- 
testing delegations, all of which were passed by the 
chairman. A survey of the situation disclosed the fact 
that there were so many of these contesting delegations, 
and that the vote already tabulated was so close be- 
tween Redwine and Sweeney, that the result would 
depend on the disposition made of the contests. Con- 
sequently, in the decision to be made by the temporary 
chairman rested the real excitement of the convention. 

The chairman as a rule recognized as legal delegates 
those whose credentials were signed by local party 
authorities. Frantic and perspiring men made threat- 
ening and incendiary speeches against these rulings 
and, as they increased in number, the excitement 
became more intense, the crowd more boisterous and 
savage. The platform was often crowded with frantic 
men; anxiety was at fever heat; and hot words were 
frequently exchanged. 

As the roll-call was nearing a close Redwine was 
slightly in the lead, and the Goebel-Stone men were 
shouting for a decision, when, suddenly, the Hardin 
men came to the front with a contest over the county 
of Kenton. This contest involved thirty-five delegates 
and the decision of the chairman regarding it would 
determine the fate of Redwine and Sweeney. The 
Goebel-Stone forces were furious, crying out that it 
was too late for a contest. The chairman then an- 
nounced that he had been served with a notice of con- 
test in this particular case and ruled that it was not 



THE DEMOCRATIC MACHINE 79 

too late. This ruling caused the Goebel-Stone forces 
to lose no time in contesting many of the large counties 
that had instructed for Hardin. Among these were 
the counties of Harrison and Campbell. 

After this the excitement grew still greater, with 
small prospect of abating. Mr. Johnston insisted that 
he, as temporary chairman of the convention, had a 
right to call to his assistance whatever peace officers he 
desired for the maintenance of order and the preser- 
vation of the public peace, and this, too, without the 
advice or direction of any organized body or the Louis- 
ville police. He accordingly appointed special bailiffs, 
who were soon present in large numbers in the con- 
vention hall, while the Goebel followers called in a 
large number of the Louisville police and riotous heel- 
ers from all over the city. Matters were looking 
squally, and, when the Kenton County case was 
reached, the storm burst. Many of the adherents of 
the three candidates mounted the platform and 
crowded around Chairman Johnston. The bailiffs en- 
deavored vainly either to preserve order or to force into 
seats the crowd that gathered around the chairman. A 
personal difficulty arose between the bailiffs and some 
of the Goebel-Stone adherents, and for more than a 
quarter of an hour curses rent the air, blows resounded 
and noses bled. Finally, the chairman adjourned the 
convention for a night session. 

The fate of the contestants was in the hands of the 
chairman. If he recognized the delegation from Ken- 
ton County as the legally constituted delegates, it 
would nominate Mr. Sweeney, Mr. Hardin's candi- 
date, for permanent chairman. This, of course, would 
mean the appointment of Hardin sympathizers on the 



8o MY OWN STORY 

committee on credentials, and they would, in all prob- 
ability, seat a sufficient number of Hardin delegates to 
give him the nomination, provided a majority of the 
delegates in the convention lived long enough to make 
a nomination. One writer, in speaking of the effect 
upon the convention of a ruling by the chair adverse 
to the Goebel forces of Kentucky, said ^' that such de- 
cision would precipitate a riot there was not the 
slightest doubt. During the afternoon it had been felt 
in the air." 

This catastrophe, however, did' not occur, as Mr. 
Johnston announced that he would recognize the Goebel 
delegates from Kenton as the legal delegates. This 
ruling on the part of Johnston resulted in the election 
of Redwine, the Goebel-Stone candidate; and when 
once elected, he proved himself to be very much the 
chairman. He apparently desired the world to sur- 
render on its knees. Parliamentary usages formed no 
part of his code. He was not there for the convention 
to direct, but to direct the convention. There was 
but one man he obeyed, but one man he served, and 
that man was William Goebel. Him he served with all 
the fidelity with which a slave serves his master. 

Throughout the whole of the proceedings, the 
master-spirit of William Goebel dominated the con- 
vention. While other men lost their reason and per- 
mitted themselves to be carried away by the excitement 
of the hour, as by a whirlwind, William Goebel was 
as cool and dispassionate as an onlooker at a Sunday- 
school convention. It was he who dictated the mem- 
bers of the various committees and directed the work 
to be done by them. At his dictation the committee 
on resolutions indorsed, bodily, the Goebel Election 



THE DEMOCRATIC MACHINE 8i 

Law. He sent men to their knees in abandonment of 
their own wills. At his command the committee on 
credentials agreed to bunch the contested cases from 
the various counties and decide them without regard to 
the merit, or lack of merit, of any individual case. 
This was a bold stroke. The Hardin men were furious, 
but Goebel gave them no consideration. He had out- 
generaled them, and now he laid his plans to make a 
cat's-paw of Captain Stone. 

In the interim, the Hardin people were enthusias- 
tically working up a mass meeting to protest against 
the rulings of " Czar " Redwine. The meeting was 
largely attended and Redwine was bitterly denounced, 
while at the same time the propriety of a bolt was freely 
discussed at the Hardin headquarters. 

The fourth day of the convention came, and the com- 
mittee on credentials was not yet ready to report. The 
Hardin men made the outcry that the committee had 
been out long enough, and a motion was offered that 
the convention take up the contests and determine 
them. The motion pended, and again pandemonium 
reigned. A number of the delegates began leaving the 
hall, but they were seized by those who desired them 
to remain, and forcibly detained. This impressed some 
with the idea that they were about to be arrested, 
which only added to their indignation. The Honor- 
able Charles J. Bronston, of Lexington, mounted a seat 
and made a fiery speech. Amidst cheers and hisses, he 
declared to such as could hear him above the din, that 
he did not care to be heard by " the thugs and hood- 
lums from the slums of Louisville, who had sur- 
rounded the convention with brass ' knucks ' and guns." 

Finally, the committee on credentials completed its 



82 MY OWN STORY 

arduous ( ?) labors, and reported. The Stone-Goebel 
combine gained, by that report, one hundred and fifty- 
nine votes over the vote that elected Redwine chair- 
man. The committee had been slow to report, but it 
had performed well the duty assigned it, which was, 
in substance, the bringing into being of delegates to 
nominate Senator Goebel. In other words, nearly the 
entire gain scored by the committee's report was in 
straight Goebel delegates. 

After this flagrant exhibition of machine-work, 
General Hardin made his way to the platform, while 
the most intense suspense hushed to silence the noisy 
convention. Speculation was rife as to what was about 
to occur. General Hardin slowly and deliberately 
mounted the platform, although his manner was 
marked by a certain degree of agitation as he stepped 
to the rostrum. He began his remarks by saying 
the interests of the Democratic party demanded that 
he speak. He then announced that he withdrew his 
name from the convention ; that he was no longer a 
candidate for the office of governor of Kentucky. Men 
often cease to struggle when success is fairly within 
their grasp, but this can not be said of General Hardin. 
Wild shouts of approval and disapproval greeted his 
unexpected announcement, but the work of the con- 
vention proceeded and the balloting was soon begun. 

Goebel developed startling strength and Stone's fol- 
lowers were immediately filled with consternation. It 
began to dawn upon them that the committee on 
credentials had, to use a slang phrase, " done the work 
for them." The Goebel men felt so confident the nomi- 
nation was within their grasp that they threw 
obligations to the winds. People often throw their 



THE DEMOCRATIC MACHINE 83 

friends overboard when, by doing so, they will insure 
their own success ; and it is needless to say the game 
of politics often illustrates this. It was asserted at one 
time that a sufficient number of votes had actually been 
cast for Goebel to nominate him, but before these votes 
could be tabulated and the result announced, some of 
the counties had withdrawn their ballots from his 
support. 

When Captain Stone fully realized the situation and 
recovered from the shock of it, he went at once to 
Goebel, who was sitting in a corner on the stage, and 
demanded that he immediately withdraw his name 
from the convention. "If you do not, I myself will 
withdraw at once and nominate General Hardin," 
exclaimed the outraged ex-Confederate. Goebel's 
lieutenants rushed to Captain Stone, while Hardin's 
henchmen rushed to the front of the stage, preparatory 
to giving a new impetus to the Hardin boom. Goebel's 
advisers implored him to accept Stone's terms and thus 
save himself from the loss of party platform, party 
organization, complete shipwreck and disaster. To 
their wild appeals for his safety Goebel listened un- 
moved. Then, rolling his large steel-gray eyes upon 
them, he calmly said : 

" If they wish to nominate Hardin, let them nomi- 
nate him. If they can stand it I can." 

After Stone's threat to nominate Hardin, Goebel and 
Stone came together on the stage and held an animated 
conference — at least animated on the part of Stone. 
Stone arose from his seat, with the intention, it was 
supposed, of withdrawing from the race and placing 
the name of General Hardin in nomination. 

" Wait a moment," said Goebel. 



84 MY OWN STORY 

Then before Stone could proceed further, his friends 
gathered about him and advised him not to act 
precipitately. In the confusion of the moment the con- 
vention was adjourned. 



CHAPTER XIII 

THE CONVENTION DECIDES 

Continuance of Democratic Convention at Music Hall — 
Despair of delegates — Judge Redwine refuses to entertain 
a motion to adjourn — Goebel is nominated — Democratic 
ticket — Independent Democrats repudiate the ticket of 
the Music Hall Convention — Objections of Prohibition- 
ists — Anti-Goebel movement goes on — Denunciation of 
the Goebel Election Law 

Monday morning found Music Hall again well 
guarded by police. About seventy-five officers were 
scattered through the convention hall. These were 
henchmen of Goebel. The Hardin-Stone men had not 
agreed on whom they would nominate, but did agree, 
with a chorus of shouts, that the police should be re- 
moved from the convention hall. Chairman Redwine 
refused to entertain either a motion to this effect or 
an appeal from his decision. 

At this point, the Hardin-Stone forces made a mad 
rush for the stage. A line of police checked them. 
Above the confusion Redwine's voice could be heard 
demanding that the secretary call the roll for the bal- 
loting for governor. The Hardin-Stone forces declared 
that this should not be done. '' Give us," they shouted, 
*' a vote upon our motion and upon our appeal." 

The disorder continued so great that twelve hours of 
that day were occupied in taking two ballots. Nearly 

85 



86 MY OWN STORY 

every time an attempt was made to call the roll, the 
exasperated Hardin-Stone supporters would fill the 
hall with shouts and a pandemonium of hideous sounds. 
Occasionally the delegates forced the unwilling audi- 
ence to submit to specimens of their vocal powers. My 
Old Kentucky Home, There'll be a Hot Time in the 
Old Town To-night, and Hang Judge Redwine on a 
Sour Apple Tree, to the tune of John Brown's Body, 
were among the favorites in their choice repertoire. 

Finally, Judge Redwine decided he would clear the 
galleries and lobbies and disperse those who, with 
horns and tin whistles, alternated a bedlam of dis- 
cordant noises with the voices of his boisterous tor- 
mentors. When he announced his intention, some one 
in the crowd cried : 

'' When you are ready to clear this floor, nominate 
your undertaker ! " 

This is a sample of the sentiment felt and expressed 
toward the chairman, and, although he hailed from the 
county of " Bloody Breathitt," and his name was really 
'* Red wine," his purpose to clear the lobbies and gal- 
leries was not carried out. Having abandoned all 
hope for even the semblance of fair play, the Stone- 
Hardin men practically decided that they would 
make an effort to adjourn the convention to Lex- 
ington, or to adjourn it sine die, without making 
a nomination. Delegates were becoming discouraged 
and worn out and some were returning to their homes. 
The action of the convention had been in so many ways 
notorious, such bitter feelings had been engendered, 
and so much dissatisfaction caused, that it was thought 
best not to make a nomination at that time. Accord- 
ingly, when the convention met next day, a motion was 



THE CONVENTION DECIDES By 

made to adjourn it sine die, and to instruct the state 
executive committee to issue a call for another con- 
vention. 

Both Captain Stone and General Hardin, in speeches 
to the delegates, urged the adoption of this motion. 
Here was another crisis. If the delegates were per- 
mitted to vote on this motion, there was not the 
slightest doubt the turbulent convention would be ad- 
journed. It was now necessary, therefore, for the 
chairman to exhibit more cool nerve than he had shown 
before, and to proceed with even less regard for the 
formalities of parliamentary usage. But Judge Red- 
wine was equal to the occasion ; he was one chairman 
in ten thousand. He arose, or descended, as the exi- 
gencies of the moment might require, to any plane of 
dictatorial despotism. He now emphatically declared 
that he ** would not entertain any motion, the object 
of which was to strike at the foundation of the con- 
vention's existence." 

The Hardin-Stone men tried in vain to appeal from 
the decision of the chair. The chairman ruled that 
such a motion was very much out of order and forth- 
with ordered that the balloting proceed. 

It did proceed, and after lasting six long, stormy, 
anxious days — days fraught with excitement and 
danger — the convention finally nominated Mr. Goebel 
on the twenty-fifth ballot, and the struggle at last was 
ended. 

GoebeFs speech of acceptance was characteristic of 
the man. It was neither honeycombed with flattery nor 
laden with sentiment of any kind. He virtually told 
those who had opposed him that he had defeated them 
in the struggle, and that it was now their duty as good 



88 MY OWN STORY 

Democrats to assist in electing him governor. At the 
conclusion of his short speech, Goebel retired from the 
convention hall, leaving the love-feast to those who 
might enjoy it. 

The affair, as a whole, could scarcely be called a 
brilliant success. On the next and final day of the 
convention, candidates for the minor state offices 
were nominated, almost entirely at the dictation of Mr. 
Goebel. They were : Mr. J. C. W. Beckham, of 
Nelson County, for lieutenant-governor; Judge Robert 
J. Breckinridge, of Boyle County, for attorney-general ; 
Mr. Gus G. Coulter, of Graves County, for auditor 
of public accounts ; Mr. S. W. Haager, of Boyd Coun- 
ty, for treasurer; Mr. C. Breck Hill, of Clark County, 
for secretary of state; Mr. H. V. McChesney, of 
Livingston County, for superintendent of public in- 
struction ; Mr. I. B. Nail, of Louisville, for commis- 
sioner of agriculture. 

So rapidly, fiercely and tumultuously do events fol- 
low one another here in our American Republic 
that they upset the calculations of politicians, and 
change, almost in the twinkling of an eye, the chances 
of success for political parties. The popular things 
and paramount issues of to-day are repudiated to- 
morrow, and this, too, without a moment's warning. 
The glittering prospect of success in the political arena 
is turned into dismal defeat with similar celerity. Fol- 
lowing the nomination of Mr. Goebel were many 
difficulties in the way of his success, numerous charges 
of more or less gravity of import were brought against 
him, and among these was one that he had killed his 
man. John Sanford, of Covington, Kentucky, was the 
victim. He was an ex-Confederate soldier, a promi- 



THE CONVENTION DECIDES 89 

nent banker and a gentleman of high social and busi- 
ness standing. On account of the killing of Sanford, 
nine-tenths of the ex-Confederates of the state declared 
they would not support Goebel. 

It is true that it was said of his election law that 
it left " nothing to chance." It did not leave much ; 
but the people are always the master when they choose 
to use the whip. When they will it, political machines 
are smashed into atoms. In this instance, the people 
were aroused. The methods of the Music Hall con- 
vention were vigorously assailed. The unseating of 
delegates, the packing of the hall with Louisville police 
and firemen, the arbitrary rulings of the partizan 
Redwine, were all loudly denounced by Democrats, 
both in public and private life. Many ministers over 
the state — in fact, the majority of them — in their 
sermons and private talks, moralized upon the Music 
Hall convention, its candidates and the probable con- 
sequences of their nomination. 

An enthusiastic meeting of Democrats was soon held 
at Mt. Sterling, Kentucky, calling upon the Democracy 
of the state to repudiate the nominees of the Music 
Hall convention. Other meetings were held for a simi- 
lar purpose, following in rapid succession in other 
parts of the state. The meeting at Bowling Green 
probably elicited more comment than any of the others. 
Theodore F. Hallam, of Covington, one of the most 
gifted men of the state, was the speaker of the occasion, 
and part of his speech was much commented on. He 
declared that he was a Democrat and held that there 
was much sacredness in the word " nominee." 

" I have always," he said, " stood ready to vote for 
a yellow dog if he was nominated on the Democratic 



90 MY OWN STORY 

ticket. I stand ready and willing, to-day, to go that 
far, but lower you shall not drag me." 

Personal difficulties were narrowly averted. It was 
early discovered that the brains of the Democratic 
party in the state were against the Goebel ticket. Such 
men as the late Colonel W. C. P. Breckinridge, Gen- 
eral Basil W. Duke, ex-Governor Simon Bolivar Buck- 
ner, and men of that type, were known to be in oppo- 
sition to the Goebel faction. Intolerance and tyranny 
compass their own ruin by driving from their support 
men who can not be coerced and who have the ability 
to think and the courage to act. Many of the rank and 
file of the party were willing to follow such men as 
Duke and Buckner. They had followed them before in 
the days of the country's peril. 

The Prohibitionists of the state also took a bold 
stand, and said in their platform : " We demand the 
repeal of the odious Goebel Election Law." The Popu- 
lists said in theirs : " We denounce the infamous 
Goebel Election Law and demand its repeal." The 
temperance people attacked Mr. Goebel and charged 
him with having defeated a local option bill, when he 
was the temporary presiding officer of the Kentucky 
Senate. 

Thus the anti-Goebel movement grew in volume and 
intensity, and it was early decided to nominate an- 
other full Democratic state ticket. It was learned 
authoritatively that the late ex-Governor John Young 
Brown would accept the nomination for governor at 
the head of the anti-Goebel forces, and lead their fight. 
There was not a Democrat in the state who had been 
more loyal in his support of all Democratic men and 
measures than John Young Brown. In faithful and 




Goebel's chair and correspondence 

In Goebel's bedroom in Covington 

His house 

GOEBEL'S HOME IN COVINGTON 



THE CONVENTION DECIDES 91 

efficient performance of his duty, his record as gov- 
ernor of the state had been surpassed by none of his 
predecessors. His pubHc and private Ufe was without 
blemish, and besides these recommendations as a man 
and a candidate, he possessed that which is possibly of 
even more value in a campaign — the gift of oratory. 

Bryan had cast his fortune in Kentucky with that 
of Goebel — an action which created a certain amount 
of depression among the anti-Goebel Democrats; but 
when Brown expressed a willingness to be their leader, 
a fresh impetus was given to their cause. On the 
sixth of August, the anti-Goebel men held their state 
convention at Lexington. The crowd was large and 
enthusiastic, and ex-Governor Brown was nominated 
by acclamation to lead the fight against the Goebel 
forces. He made a stirring and eloquent speech of 
acceptance. 

" Are you ready," he asked, " to bow down in abject 
submission? Are you ready to surrender your birth- 
right under the name of party regularity?" He said 
that the man who would tamper with the humblest citi- 
zen's right to vote, or the man who would falsify that 
vote was " a public enemy, and worse than an assas- 
sin." He declared " that the civilization of the age 
would approve, and the moral atmosphere of every 
community would be purified, if the scoundrel should 
be forced to don a felon's stripes, and hold his con- 
versations through barred doors." 

The other candidates nominated were : Major P. P. 
Johnston, of Fayette County, for lieutenant-governor; 
L. P. Tanner, of Daviess County, for attorney-general ; 
Frank Pasteur, of Caldwell County, for auditor of 
public accounts; Captain E. L. Hines, of Warren 



92 MY OWN STORY 

County, for secretary of state; Mr. John Droedge, of 
Kenton County, for treasurer; the Reverend E. O. 
Guerrant, of Jackson County, for superintendent of 
public instruction; and Mr. G. H. Van Derveer, of 
Lincoln County, for commissioner of agriculture. 

The platform adopted was a very strong one. It 
denounced the Goebel Election Law in no uncertain 
terms ; it declared that the Music Hall convention was 
" held up " by police, and robbed by Judge Redwine's 
unprecedented rulings, and that one-third of the Demo- 
crats of the state had been disfranchised. 



CHAPTER XIV 

THE REPUBLICAN CONVENTION 

Race for nominations on the Republican ticket — State con- 
vention at Lexington — I am nominated for Secretary of 
State 

Such were the events which, step by step, had led 
to this condition of Kentucky Democracy, and this was. 
the situation in which that party found itself at the 
threshold of the famous campaign of 1899. As my 
fate was to be cast in lines similar to those of the 
Republican party, my own situation may be the better 
understood if the conditions confronting my party at 
this time are clearly in mind. I aspired to the Repub- 
lican nomination for the office of secretary of state. I 
talked this matter over with many of my warm friends, 
but I did not indicate, as is usually the case, how I 
wished to be advised. 

There is a strong desire, if not a necessity, in every 
soul to impart its joys and aspirations. I gave the 
matter serious thought myself, and, after weigh- 
ing the advantages and disadvantages of such an 
undertaking, and not forgetting the possibilities of 
success or defeat, I decided to enter the contest for the 
nomination. Having determined upon my course, I 
decided to push my candidacy with vigor. One who 
enters politics with any reasonable hope of success must 
be willing to stake his all upon one throw of the dice. 

93 



94 MY OWN STORY 

The race for the nomination for governor waxed 
warm, and in that, as in every other similar contest, 
interest in the lower places on the state ticket was over- 
shadowed by the all-absorbing contest for the guberna- 
torial nomination. The entries in the race were Wil- 
liam S. Taylor, of Morgantown, Butler County, who 
had been the attorney-general of the state under Gov- 
ernor Bradley's administration; Colonel Samuel H. 
Stone, of Richmond, auditor of public accounts under 
the same administration; and Judge Clifton J. Pratt, 
of Hopkinsville, Christian County, a man successful as 
lawyer, politician and financier. There were five en- 
tries, including myself, for the office of secretary of 
state. As the various counties in the state soon called 
their conventions — they were held on different days 
— it was most agreeable to me to see that I, despite 
fierce opposition, was receiving more instructed votes 
than any of my opponents. 

I arrived at Lexington to attend the state convention 
rather early in the action, opened headquarters at the 
Phoenix Hotel and worked with unflagging zeal to 
secure the nomination for the office I sought. I knew 
few of the party leaders, and consequently was 
placed at a great disadvantage; but my candidacy 
progressed admirably, and for a time I was on, or 
thought I was on, " the slate " for nomination, al- 
though it was strenuously denied by those in control 
of the convention that there was any slate. But who 
ever heard of a state convention where there was no 
slate ? 

The night before nominations were to be made, a 
change in the program occurred and it was decided by 
those supposed to be in authority that it would not be 



THE REPUBLICAN CONVENTION 95 

good policy to nominate me, for, besides being un- 
known, I was " so young." 

The nomination of W. S. Taylor for the governor- 
ship was almost a foregone conclusion from the very 
beginning. His record as attorney-general of the state 
was unimpeachable. Stone, however, had conducted 
the office of auditor of public accounts to the entire 
satisfaction of the public, while Pratt had been circuit 
judge for a number of years and had made an efficient 
officer. Taylor, however, seemed to have captured the 
public's favor, although the other candidates were men 
with clean and admirable records. 

When Judge James Breathitt, chairman of the con- 
vention, announced that nominations for governor were 
in order. Colonel Stone and Judge Pratt withdrew their 
names from consideration of the convention, and 
W. S. Taylor was declared the Republican nominee 
for governor. The wildest enthusiasm prevailed when 
the action of the delegates was officially announced. 

After the Honorable John Marshall, of Louisville, 
was nominated lieutenant-governor, the nomination for 
secretary of state was, according to the program de- 
cided on, next in order. The moments were filled with 
suspense for me. Senator W. J. Deboe, Kentucky's 
first Republican United States senator, at this time 
reputed to be the principal slate-maker of the con- 
vention, had just said to me that, unless I agreed to 
an adjournment of the convention until the after- 
noon, before the nomination for the office I sought was 
made, I would be defeated. I did not agree to the 
adjournment, because I believed a majority of the 
delegates then favored my nomination, and I feared 
to allow the politicians any time whatever wherein they 



96 MY OWN STORY 

might lay plans to secure my defeat. It is just to 
Senator Deboe to say, however, that after a motion to 
adjourn the convention was put and lost, and after the 
various candidates for the nomination for secretary of 
state were placed in nomination. Senator Deboe and 
his friends heartily supported my candidacy. I hoped 
for success, but was prepared for defeat. 

For two nights I had not sought rest until two 
o'clock in the morning, because I was working and 
planning for victory. I had done all I could do, 
and was anxious for the struggle to end and the results 
to become known. Uncertainty wears life threadbare. 
Many interested politicians were on the platform with 
me when my name was placed before the convention. 
The broad amphitheater in front of us was packed with 
an excited mass of humanity, composed largely of 
young men who were the hope and promise of what 
had only recently assumed the proportions of a great 
political party in Kentucky, while to the rear of the 
stage, the telegraph wires were flashing the proceed- 
ings of the convention to all parts of an anxious and 
expectant state. To me, very naturally, the seconds 
were charged with intense interest and suspense. 

Before the votes of the various counties had all been 
announced, it was evident that I had received a major- 
ity of all the ballots in the power of the convention to 
cast, and my nomination was, of course, assured. My 
heart throbbed with joy. The struggles of my life 
were now rewarded ; my ambitions vaulted skyward. 
After nominating the Reverend John S. Sweeney, 
of Paris, Bourbon County, for auditor of public ac- 
counts; Walter R. Day, of Breathitt County, for state 
treasurer; Professor John Burke, of Newport, Camp- 



THE REPUBLICAN CONVENTION 97 

bell County, for superintendent of public instruction, 
and John W. Throckmorton, of Lexington, Fayette 
County, for commissioner of agriculture, the conven- 
tion adjourned. It had been harmonious throughout 
and was in striking contrast to the turbulent affair 
held in Music Hall. 



CHAPTER XV 

MR. BRYAN VISITS KENTUCKY 

Goebel opens his campaign at Mayfield — His reluctance to 
mix with people — Republican campaign begins at London 
— Opening of anti-Goebel campaign at Bowling Green — 
Goebel refuses to take part in joint debate — Mr. Bryan 
on the stump for Goebel — Louisville election board re- 
moves election officers 

Goebel formally opened his campaign at Mayfield, 
Graves County, August tv^elfth. Those who had pre- 
dicted that he would meet with a chilling reception and 
then and there realize the hopelessness of his cause 
proved to be false prophets. The crowd was there, 
there can be no doubt of that; but, as has been said 
of it, " it was rather a cold and curious crowd," and 
Goebel added nothing whatever to its enthusiasm, even 
when the time came for him to address it. In marked 
contrast to Blackburn, he had but little to say, and 
what he said and his manner of saying it were cold. 
Great men do not affiliate freely with others, but dwell 
apart from their fellows, and Goebel, in some respects, 
was a great man — great in intellect, great in energy, 
great in will. But, he was not a good " mixer," for he 
possessed neither personal magnetism nor personal 
attraction. He never condescended to personal famil- 
iarity or personal intimacy. He did not achieve suc- 
cess in the political arena in what may be termed a pop- 

98 



MR. BRYAN VISITS KENTUCKY 99 

ular manner. He neither passed pleasantries nor re- 
counted jokes. He disliked hand-shaking as a business, 
and only submitted to it when it could not be avoided. 
He was a political strategist, a schemer, a planner. He 
had fought life's battle, beginning in the ranks of pov- 
erty. He was bold, daring, self-reliant, a lawyer of 
ability, and so confident of his own opinions that his 
advisers usually became, in the end, instead of his 
counselors, the creatures of his dominating will. That 
he must now come in personal contact with the voters 
was uncongenial for Goebel and it is small wonder that 
he was not more successful. 

When he made his first speech at the launching of 
his political ship, he spoke about thirty minutes, and 
then fell over suddenly as if dead. The severe heat 
of the day had prostrated him and he was unable to 
resume speaking until some time had elapsed. The 
superstitious — and they are always to be found — con- 
sidered this a bad omen for Goebel and his ticket. 
Senator J. C. S. Blackburn followed Mr. Goebel in a 
characteristic speech. "If political thievery is to con- 
tinue in Kentucky, in spite of the Goebel Election 
Law," he said, " I am willing to swear that the other 
fellows will not do the stealing." 

The Republicans opened their campaign at London, 
on August twenty-second. Taylor is a gifted and 
warm-mannered speaker, and was greeted with enthu- 
siasm. " When," said he, " a law fails to provide 
against any inequalities and wrongs, it is equivalent 
to a direction to do wrong. To make possible is to 
license. The Goebel followers propose to rob us of 
our suffrage in this campaign if we will permit it. 
Every election board in each of the one hundred and 



loo MY OWN STORY 

nineteen counties in the state is packed with a majority 
of Goebel partizans. Even where RepubUcans have 
been named as precinct election officers, in many cases, 
they are old, infirm and wholly incompetent to act. 
And we are told, with solemnity, that the decisions of 
the various election boards are final and conclusive — 
too sacred to be touched by human hands. It is not a 
question of parties, it is not a question of men, but it 
is a question whether we shall longer exist as a free 
people." He spoke with angry vehemence, his long, 
shaggy, black hair waving in the wind, his bony 
fingers clenched in emphasis. 

Four days after the Republicans had opened the 
campaign at London, the anti-Goebel Democrats 
opened theirs at Bowling Green. Ex-Governor Brown 
made a stirring address. After Mr. Brown had re- 
ceived the nomination for the governorship, at Lex- 
ington, Goebel and his followers made him the special 
object of their acrimony. Ex-Governor Brown in turn 
now trained his batteries upon them, and, in his usual 
vigorous style, delivered some telling blows. 

The campaign waxed warmer and warmer, if it is 
not doing violence to the word to call it a campaign. 
It danced on the ragged edge of a vendetta. Charges 
and countercharges were made. Denunciation, re- 
criminations, threats and violence marked every step 
of the belligerent crowds. The whole state was a 
hotbed of strife and hatred. Even to this day the 
passions and prejudices of the forces that lined up on 
either side of this controversy have by no means van- 
ished. 

Early in the campaign, Goebel's henchmen saw that 
the breach was too wide for them to think of inducing 





COLONEL "JACK" CHINN, WHO WAS WITH GOEBEL WHEN THE 

LATTER WAS SHOT 



MR. BRYAN VISITS KENTUCKY loi 

the anti-Goebel men to join their ranks by persuasive 
methods, so they sought to force them. Goebel himself 
became more and more bitter in his denunciation of 
those Democrats who opposed his election. In his 
speech at Bowling Green, shortly after ex-Governor 
Brown had opened his canvass, he said, in speaking of 
those who opposed him : " I ask no quarter, and I 
fear no foe." At the same time he spared none, and, 
in fact, he singled out and attacked each and every 
man of political standing among his opponents. The 
shaft he aimed at Major W. C. Owens was that Owens 
dishked him because he had used his influence against 
faro-banks and other gambling devices and resorts, 
which had " interfered with Owens' regular business, 
so, of course, he does not like it." He charged Theo- 
dore Hallam with having a brother in the peniten- 
tiary, while his followers castigated the late Colonel 
W. C. P. Breckinridge and ex-Governor Simon Bolivar 
Buckner unmercifully. As we know the fruitful apple- 
tree by the number of stones at its roots and by the 
number of sticks thrown into its branches, so we know 
the caliber of men by the way they are traduced and 
denounced. The man who amounts to anything — 
who is anybody — expects to be criticized and vilified. 
All great men understand this ; it is as certainly one of 
the penalties of greatness, as it is a proof of greatness, 
to be able to endure these attacks without resentment. 
The Brown spellbinders made much capital out of 
the fact that Goebel had refused to meet their cham- 
pion in joint debate, while those whom Mr. Goebel 
had attacked in a personal manner responded in lan- 
guage equally severe. Major Owens said that he 
opposed Goebel, not for the reason given by him, but 



I02 MY OWN STORY 

because Goebel had violated three Christian precepts 
— Thou shalt not lie, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt 
not kill. Mr. Hallam denied the charge of having a 
brother in the penitentiary and added that while Mr. 
Goebel had no brother in the penitentiary, " his brothers 
have a brother who ought to be there." 

When excitement and bad feeling had grown to 
such proportions that it was obviously impossible to 
assuage them, Mr. Bryan was induced by Mr. Goebel 
to come to Kentucky. It was hoped that the Ne- 
braskan's appearance would at least turn the tide, 
if it did not, in fact, allay the passions entirely. 

The Goebel supporters were in high feather when 
Bryan's tour of the state was ended, and he had 
departed for a similar journey through Ohio. The 
famous Democratic national leader left behind in Ken- 
tucky the most roseate visions of an harmonious De- 
mocracy marching to victory. But these were only 
visions. The Brown contingent, like Banquo's ghost, 
would not down, even at the bidding of Mr. Bryan. 
It was made of sturdy stuff. It represented the brain 
and character of the Democratic party in Kentucky, 
and the men composing it refused to be driven. It 
is easy to arouse the feelings of the rabid and mystify 
the minds of the ignorant, but to carry the man of 
calm and sober thought off his feet is a difficult matter. 

The last week of the campaign was replete with 
stirring events. No candidate felt that his election 
was a certainty, and each one stubbornly continued 
the fight until the polls were closed on the evening 
of election day. Goebel confined his canvass of the 
last week principally to Louisville. The Republicans 
had special trains flying over the state, on which were 



MR. BRYAN VISITS KENTUCKY 103 

Governor Bradley and other prominent men of the 
party, who made speeches at every station, while Mr. 
Taylor and others did similar work. Bradley said, 
in speaking of the theft of the ballot : " Yes, I would 
rather steal the last crumb from a hungry beggar, 
mean and despicable as that would be, than rob my 
fellow citizen of his vote." George Denny, a Republi- 
can orator of no mean ability, said : " The man who 
casts out a legal ballot is a traitor to his country and, 
in the language of Patrick Henry, * Give me liberty 
or give me death.' If this is incendiary," he continued, 
" I say, make the most of it." 

Late in the afternoon of the day before the election, 
the Louisville election board unceremoniously threw 
out eighty-seven Republican election officers, and 
filled their places with men who could be relied upon to 
meet the emergencies of the occasion. This changed 
the personnel of half the voting precincts in the city. 
The appointment of the extra police, the refusal of 
the election board to allow the Brown organization and 
the Populist and the Prohibition inspectors at the polls, 
the wholesale removal of the Republican precinct elec- 
tion officers less than eighteen hours before the polls 
were opened, were the *' culmination of infamy," as 
the Republicans expressed It, and were merely fore- 
runners of the next day's proceedings. 

The news of the removal of the Republican precinct 
officers spread over the city like wildfire. Men became 
drunk with passion. The wires of the telephone and 
telegraph were hot with the outrageous news, and 
alarm and terror swept swiftly over the entire state. 
Enraged and outraged men walked the streets of Louis- 
ville, torn with conflicting emotions. The great crowd 



\.. 



104 MY OWN STORY 

vacillated between violence and submission for more 
than an hour. The excitement was so intense that 
Governor Bradley canceled his appointment to speak 
in the city that night, but both Goebel and Blackburn 
addressed immense crowds. 



CHAPTER XVI 

ELECTION DAY IN KENTUCKY IN 1 899 

Election day — "Repeaters' paradise" — Assembling of mili- 
tary — Republicans win by a safe plurality — Democrats 
claim election — Election board renders decision in favor 
of Republicans 

The early morning of election day saw thousands of 
voters on their way to the polls — some to be allowed 
the exercise of their sacred rights as citizens, while 
others were to be denied theirs. In Lexington and 
other cities the most stupendous corruption prevailed. 
In Louisville, in some precincts, the voting places 
were removed. In others the voting did not begin 
until late in the day; in many it did not begin at all, 
it is said, until plans had been matured to sink the 
ballot-boxes in the Ohio River after the polls had 
been closed; and in still others ballot-boxes were 
heavily " padded " before the voting began. Louis- 
ville was overrun with " repeaters " from other 
cities, and proved in truth on this day to be the re- 
peaters' paradise ; for they were protected by police- 
men, firemen, thugs and bullies. In droves the 
" phony " voters were chaperoned throughout the day 
from one voting-place to another, and gave the names 
and cast the votes of actual or supposed residents of 
the city, while officers of the law, whose duty it was 
to protect the ballot, bade them God-speed. 

105 



io6 MY OWN STORY 

By order of Governor Bradley, the military had 
been assembled in the armory in anticipation of trouble, 
but was not called out until three hours after 
the polls had been closed. Three companies then left 
the armory and visited only eight of the polling places 
where trouble had been reported. Fraud and cor- 
ruption ran riot at a majority of the voting precincts 
throughout the entire city. In spite of all this the 
opposition to the Goebel ticket was so overwhelming 
that it was learned early in the night that the Repub- 
licans had carried Louisville by a majority of nearly 
twenty-five hundred, and, before morning dawned, 
the Republicans knew that Taylor and his ticket had 
won by a safe plurality, although at the Goebel head- 
quarters the state was claimed for the Goebel forces. 
Had not the Goebel followers and those operating 
under the Goebel Election Law underestimated the 
magnitude of the opposition to the Goebel ticket, the 
result might have been written in different figures. 

On Wednesday, when Taylor reached Louisville, 
he gave to the country a signed statement, in which 
he said he had been elected in spite of the disfran- 
chisement of twenty-five thousand voters favorable to 
him ; and that the trust which the people had con- 
fided to him would be assumed and maintained. When 
Goebel reached his headquarters at Frankfort from 
Covington, where he had spent election day, his fol- 
lowers and adherents were panic-stricken. A crowd of 
his supporters met him at the train and followed him 
to the Capital Hotel, where they induced him to make 
a speech from its steps. They were anxious to 
know what he had to say about the election. His 
words were worth more to them and they placed 



ELECTION DAY IN KENTUCKY IN 1899 107 

more confidence in them than in any returns they might 
receive. 

Goebel was more excited than his worshiping fol- 
lowers had ever seen him. When the crowd cheered 
him madly as the governor-elect, he said, with pas- 
sionate emphasis : " I have been honestly elected gov- 
ernor of Kentucky. . . . Mr. Taylor says in an 
interview, that he will assume the office and maintain 
it. All that I have to say is that, if declared elected, I 
will occupy the office." 

J. Willard Mitchell, a leading Democratic politician, 
who was recently a candidate for the office of attor- 
ney-general, followed Goebel in an incendiary speech. 

When the results of the election were more fully 
known it was clear that the Legislature would be 
strongly Democratic, but that Taylor and his ticket had 
won on the face of the returns by over three thousand 
votes. This was a signal victory for the Republicans 
when the fact is considered that Kentucky is a Demo- 
cratic state ; and that the Republicans were handicapped 
by the notorious Goebel Election Law, which, it is not 
difficult to understand, placed the entire election ma- 
chinery of the whole state in the hands of the Demo- 
crats. While the Republicans were congratulating 
themselves upon their victory, their joy was mingled 
with dread and doubt, for they realized that this elec- 
tion law might still be the cause of ruin and con- 
fusion. Its dangerous possibilities had not yet been 
taxed to their utmost. It had latent powers that might 
still be used with crushing effect. 

These, fears were not without foundation, for the 
Democrats soon announced that both state and coun- 
ty election boards had the right to pass upon the 



io8 MY OWN STORY 

legality of the ballots, even before a contest was 
instituted, as well as to tabulate the returns of the 
election. They contended further that in several coun- 
ties which had given large Republican majorities, the 
ballots were so thin as to be transparent, and that 
the voters in the city of Louisville had been intimidated 
on election day by the presence of the military in that 
city and that, therefore, none of the votes was valid, 
but on the contrary, all were null and void, and should 
not be and would not be counted. 

The Republicans, on the other hand, maintained that 
these charges were hollow subterfuges and the emptiest 
of pretenses, resorted to by desperate and defeated 
office-seekers for the purpose of reversing the will of 
the people as expressed at the polls. They pointed 
out that the military remained in the armory at Louis- 
ville until three hours after the polls had been closed 
on election day, that no one raised any objection to 
the ballot on the day of the election, and that " thin " 
ballots were confessedly an afterthought. The claim 
on the part of the Democrats that the election boards 
had the power to throw out, when acting in their cler- 
ical capacity, any votes they might desire to cancel was 
bitterly denounced and denied. The Republicans and 
anti-Goebel Democrats loudly censured the election 
law, which gave being to the state board of elec- 
tion commissioners and clothed that body with supreme 
power, but gave the citizen, who knew himself to be 
defrauded, no means of redress. It will be remem- 
bered that the election law declared that the decision 
of the board should be final and conclusive. , 

Three men in the state, according to this provision, 
held the liberties of the people within the hollow of 



ELECTION DAY IN KENTUCKY IN 1899 109 

their hands. They had the power to declare at will 
that the defeated had been elected or the elected 
had been defeated; and this law, which gave the 
state election board such unbridled authority over the 
rights of Kentuckians, had been declared constitu- 
tional by the Democratic majority of the court of 
appeals. What relief, then, had the people? They 
could only remonstrate; and this they proceeded to do 
vigorously. Mass meetings were called and strong pleas 
were made that the county and state election boards 
heed the voice of the voters as expressed at the polls. 
Finally, after much excitement, further delay and the 
institution of several suits, all the county boards were 
compelled to tabulate the returns of the election in the 
various counties, and certify this vote to the secretary 
of state. These certified returns from all the coun- 
ties gave the entire Republican ticket a plurality of 
all the votes cast ; but, despite this fact, it was repeat- 
edly and freely asserted that the state election board 
would ignore enough legitimate Republican votes to 
give the Goebel ticket an illegitimate plurality, and 
would issue to it certificates of election. This report 
brought crowds of people to Frankfort, many coming 
from the mountains of Kentucky to be present when 
the state election board should meet to tabulate the 
election returns. 

When it rendered its decision, contrary to the ex- 
pectation of many, two of its members, Messrs. Pryor 
and Ellis, handed down a majority opinion (Mr. 
Poyntz dissenting) in favor of the Republicans and 
gave the certificate of election to Taylor and the entire 
Republican ticket. They had tabulated the returns of 
the various county boards without change or amend- 



no MY OWN STORY 

ment, and certified to the result as they had found it. 
As can be easily imagined, this was a severe blow and 
disappointment to Goebel and his ticket, for the elec- 
tion officers throughout the state, the majority of the 
members of county boards and all the members of the 
state election board, were men of their own selection. 
They decided that more votes had been cast for Tay- 
lor and his ticket than for Goebel and his ; but in spite 
of this fact, contests for the various offices from the 
governorship down were soon instituted by the Dem- 
ocrats. Goebel had appealed from his own election 
boards to his own Legislature ; and plans were laid to 
throw out fifty thousand Republican votes, or more, 
alleging military intimidation, thin ballots and the like. 
The Republican officers-elect, however, were regularly 
inducted into office. 



CHAPTER XVII 

THE REPUBLICANS STAND FIRM 

Goebel contests decision of election board — Democratic 
caucus — Evidence of Mr. Harrel — Inauguration of Tay- 
lor — ■ Rules of Contest Committee 

Soon after Judge Pryor and Captain Ellis had given 
the certificate of election to the Republicans, they re- 
signed their positions as members of the state board 
of election commissioners. Their action was signifi- 
cant. It is said they did not feel they could afford 
to soil their records by disfranchising their fellow 
countrymen, even acting in their judicial capacity. 

Before entering upon the (^ntest, Mr. Goebel had 
the Democratic state central committee called in ses- 
sion to indorse the step. The determination on the 
part of Mr. Goebel to take his contest before the Leg- 
islature as a party contest was a shrewd diplomatic 
move. His cause by this action and by the in- 
dorsement of the state central committee would then 
become the party's cause — his success or failure the 
success or failure of his party. When the contest 
became a party measure it relieved him then and there 
of much responsibility, and gave to his contest at 
the same time an immense amount of influence and 
strength of which it would otherwise have been di- 
vested. He proposed, in short, to place the party 
upon the firing line, and force it to bear the brunt. 

Ill 



,112 MY OWN STORY 

A few days after the resignation of his colleagues, 
Mr. Poyntz filled one of the vacancies on the election 
board by the appointment of Judge John A. Fulton, 
of Nelson County, and in a few days, Morton K. 
Yonts, of Muhlenberg County, was appointed the 
third member of the commission. Yonts is an un- 
compromising Democrat. Judge Fulton, prior to his 
appointment, had demonstrated his quahfications and 
fitness to serve. In a card given to the public, re- 
ferring to the calling out of the militia at Louis- 
ville, he said : " What should be done with the vote 
of a city so dominated by unlawful force? It should 
unhesitatingly be rejected as a tainted thing." After 
saying publicly that the vote of Louisville should 
thus be disposed of. Judge Fulton was certainly well 
qualified, as far as partizanship and a previously ex- 
pressed opinion could qualify him, to be a good mem- 
ber of this Goebelized state board of election com- 
missioners. With such members on the board as Mr. 
Poyntz, who had already voted against giving cer- 
tificates of election to the Republicans, and Judge 
Fulton, who had expressed his opinion so frankly, it 
may be readily understood that the prospects of the 
minor state officials to occupy the offices to which 
they had been elected were by no means flattering, 
whatever might be the majority by which they had 
been voted into office. But since the contest for the 
office of governor and lieutenant-governor had to be 
instituted in and decided by the general assembly, 
Goebel and Beckham were not so sure of victory as 
were the other contestants, whose rights to the offices 
were to be determined by Poyntz, Fulton and Yonts. 
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THE REPUBLICANS STAND FIRM 113 

of the general assembly were openly declaring that 
the Republicans had been legally elected and were 
entitled to the offices. 

A Democratic caucus with the party lash well ap- 
plied was, therefore, a necessity, and, when it was 
held on the night of January first, a drama was ar- 
ranged which its managers thought would be suffi- 
ciently imposing and realistic to keep within the fold 
all ^altering or weakening Democrats. It had its 
origin in the rumor that the Republicans would be 
'sustained in their fight, if not installed in office, by 
the " filthy lucre " furnished by the Louisville and 
Nashville Railroad Company. 

The opening scene of this drama was sensational 
in the extreme. The curtain arose displaying to a 
large and eager audience, composed of many senators 
and representatives, the actors in the first scene. Mr. 
Goebel called the caucus to order, whereupon Senator 
S. B. Harrel, of Russellville, Logan County, demanded 
recognition, which was readily granted. He then 
strode forward, clad in imaginary toga and buskins 
and dangling portentously two small keys. In- 
teresting developments had been promised ; the audi- 
ence waited, hushed and expectant. The hero of 
the evening pierced the assembly with his sharp gaze 
and continued to dangle his keys. Figuratively, the 
footlights were burning blue and low, and the music 
was suitable as an accompaniment for the words of a 
dying Hamlet. In such an atmosphere, with all neces- 
sary accessories at hand, in one grand burst of pa- 
triotic ardor and self-congratulation that he was not 
like other men, Mr. Harrel began his lines : 

" I wish to say to you that these keys unlock a 



114 MY OWN STORY 

box in the Louisville Trust Company's vault, where- 
from, if I should have failed at this hour to come 
to this caucus and by my absence refused to rally to 
the support of my party, I might have taken four one- 
thousand-dollar-bills and five one-hundred-dollar-bills. 
But there is not enough money in this land to bribe, 
muzzle or intimidate me." 

When his outburst of eloquence had been sufficiently 
stripped of its florid language and melodramatic dress 
to permit an understanding of it by the ordinary mind, 
Mr. Harrel said in substance that John Whallen of 
Louisville, a strong anti-Goebel man and withal one 
of the shrewdest politicians either the city of Louis- 
ville or the state of Kentucky ever produced, had 
offered him forty-five hundred dollars to remain out 
of the Democratic caucus and vote against Senator 
Goebel in the contest for the governorship. Mr. 
Whallen, he said, had approached him after the elec- 
tion with this proposition. With a view to trapping 
Mr. Whallen and the opposition, Mr. Harrel asserted, 
he went to Louisville, met Mr. Whallen, agreed 
to take the forty-five hundred dollars, remain out of 
the Democratic caucus, and vote against Senator 
Goebel in the contest for the governorship. Mr. 
Hai»rel said that Mr. Whallen and himself held keys 
to the deposit box wherein the money had been placed. 
The whole sum was to come into his possession, he 
said, when he complied with his part of the contract. 

All this Mr. Harrel placed before his audience in 
the most dramatic manner and the most impressive 
language. Later he was escorted to the office of Squire 
George B. Thompson, before whom he swore out a 
warrant against Mr. Whallen, charging him with an 



THE REPUBLICANS STAND FIRM 115 

attempt at bribery. In a short time, that convenient 
body, the FrankHn County grand jury, indicted Mr. 
Whallen and a Mr. Ryan on the information suppHed 
by Mr. Harrel. However, it seemed that it v^as finally 
agreed by the members of the Democratic general as- 
sembly that even Judge James E. Cantrill's court, with 
all its modern conveniences, could not do full justice to 
an anti-Goebel Democrat who was charged with at- 
tempting to bribe a member of its own immaculate 
body. It proceeded, therefore, to open the gates of the 
slaughter-house for Mr. Whallen's reception by offer- 
ing a resolution providing for his trial by a committee 
of its own members. After these stage-plays had 
served their political purpose, the attempt to prosecute 
Mr. Whallen and Mr. Ryan was abandoned. But the 
weak ones of the general assembly were driven into 
line by the fear of their future political prospects if 
they proved recalcitrant, while the honest ones feared 
that, should they vote for Taylor and their convictions, 
they would be considered dishonest. 

Taylor and Marshall, however, were duly Inaugu- 
rated governor and lieutenant-governor of the Com- 
monwealth on the twelfth day of December, each 
taking the oath of office before Judge James H. Hazel- 
rigg, a Democrat, then chief of the court of appeals. 
On the first day of January, the minor state officers- 
elect assumed the duties of the offices to which they 
had been elected. I was still holding the position of 
superintendent of public schools of Knox County, but 
resigned that office (my brother, John L. Powers, was 
appointed to fill the vacancy) for the purpose of taking 
charge of the office of secretary of state. I took the 
oath of office before Henry E. Youtsey, who^ happened 



ii6 MY OWN STORYi 

to be the most convenient notary public. This was the 
first time I had ever seen Henry E. Youtsey, whom I 
shall have occasion to mention later. 

Meanwhile, the faint and flickering hope of the 
minor state officers-elect was being slowly extinguished, 
and the chances of holding the offices of governor and 
lieutenant-governor were also gradually diminishing. 
The Goebel law provided that all election contests for 
the office of governor and the office of lieutenant- 
governor should each be tried by a committee of three 
senators and eight representatives. The committees 
were to be drawn by lot and were required to report 
their decisions to the Legislature for final judgment. 
The framers of the Goebel Law had been afraid to refer 
any contest to the decision of any committee drawn 
by lot; so, as a further safeguard against uncertainty, 
they declared that the decision, in any contested elec- 
tion case, should be subject to the approval of the Leg- 
islature before becoming final. 

On the third of January, the drawing of the names 
of three senators and eight representatives to compose 
a committee to try the contest for governor was held. 
No sleight-of-hand performance ever equaled it. No 
one was permitted to supervise the drawings; the 
speaker ruled out of order a motion to that end. The 
result was that of the eleven members chosen to try the 
contest, eight from the House and two from the Senate 
were Goebel Democrats. The committee drawn to de- 
cide the contest for lieutenant-governor consisted of 
nine Goebel Democrats and two Republicans. 

The result obtained was most remarkable, especially 
when the relative strength of the two parties is con- 
sidered. Including the two Populists and the four 



THE REPUBLICANS STAND FIRM 117 

anti-Goebel members, who voted with the RepubHcans, 
the Senate stood twenty Democrats to eighteen Re- 
pubhcans, while the House stood forty-two straight 
RepubHcans to fifty-eight Democrats, three of whom 
were said to be anti-Goebel in tendencies. A mathe- 
matical calculation shows that the drawing of eigh- 
teen Goebel Democrats to only three Republicans from 
the general assembly, constituted as it was politically, 
could occur only once in three hundred and fifty thou- 
sand times if conducted with fairness. The committees 
were well if if not fairly selected. Their members soon 
provided a set of rules governing the hearing of the 
contest cases, to which even the most violent partizan 
could not object; and, under these regulations, forth- 
with they began the weighty work in hand, no doubt 
with a firm determination to give it their earnest, 
honest, and prayerful consideration. Each committee- 
man must have remembered the oft-repeated epigram 
that " brevity is the soul of wit," and the old saw, as 
well, that " time is precious," for they adopted further 
rules of their own at the beginning of their deliber- 
ations, which provided for the holding of a joint trial 
of the contest for governor and lieutenant-governor. 



CHAPTER XVIir 

THE SHOOTING OF WILLIAM GOEBEL 

Effort of Taylor's attorneys to remove Democratic members 
of contest committees — Suit to enjoin Taylor appointees 
from taking oath of office — Republicans seek to arouse 
the people — I bring the mountain people to Frankfort — 
Meeting on the steps of the Capitol — I go to Louisville 
for more petitioners — Goebel is shot — The excitement 
at Frankfort — The military is called out 

The first step taken by the attorneys for Taylor and 
Marshall v^^as a motion to remove the Democratic 
members of the tv^o contest committees because of 
their extreme partizanship. The members of the 
contest committees treated the motion with contempt, 
and forthwith overruled it. The affidavits filed in 
support of the motion were likewise contemptuously 
ignored, while other affidavits of the contestees, ask- 
ing that the committees retire because they had been 
fraudulently drawn, met with a similar fate. The affi- 
davits exposed the shortcomings of the members of the 
committees individually. They charged five members 
with having attended the conference of Democrats that 
was held at the Capital Hotel, on December fourteenth, 
urging Senator Goebel to contest the election. They 
stated that another member of one of the committees 
had laid a wager on the result of the Goebel-Taylor 
election. They showed that the seat of one member 

ii8 



THE SHOOTING OF WILLIAM GOEBEL 119 

was being contested upon the same grounds, and gave 
facts that the contestees would present as their defense 
in the contest suit. 

The committees held that there was no provision of 
the election law which required them to vacate their 
position on the grounds alleged, or on any grounds that 
could be alleged; and that they proposed to try the 
cases. And as proof of their determination, they pro- 
ceeded with the hearing of the evidence. 

The proceedings that followed were nothing short 
of mere mockeries. The well-established modes of 
taking testimony were disregarded ; and the laws gov- 
erning judicial tribunals in the hearing of cases were 
contemptuously ignored. The Republicans were per- 
mitted to introduce only a very small number of their 
witnesses, although others were present and ready to 
testify. 

While these things were occurring in the contests 
for the offices of governor and lieutenant-governor, 
matters of much moment were taking place concern- 
ing the contests for the lower state offices. When 
Captain W. T. Ellis and Judge W. S. Pryor resigned 
from the state election board. Governor Taylor, main- 
taining he had the power as governor to do it, ap- 
pointed Judges A. M. J. Cochran and W. H. McCoy 
to fill the vacancies. 

The Poyntz board brought suit early in January, 
before Judge Cantrill's court at Frankfort, to enjoin 
these Taylor appointees from taking the oath of office, 
or exercising their duties as members of the state 
election board. Judge Cantrill granted the injunction 
of the Poyntz board against the Taylor appointees, and 
immediately, and upon his own motion, dissolved the 



120 MY OWN STORY 

injunction. This was a very remarkable feat for a 
judge to perform. 

If he had not dissolved the injunction which he had 
granted, the Republicans would have had, under the 
laws of Kentucky, the right, on appeal, to select 
the judge of the court of appeals before whom the 
case would be tried, and there were three Republi- 
can judges on the appellate bench at that time. By 
dissolving the injunction, Judge Cantrill gave the 
Poyntz board the right, on appeal, to name the mem- 
ber of the appellate court before whom its case would 
be tried, and it named Chief Justice James H. Hazel- 
rigg, who called in the full court to hear the case. 

The four Democratic judges of the court of appeals 
(the three Republican judges dissenting) decided that 
the contest board, composed of Messrs. Poyntz, Fulton 
and Yonts, was the legally constituted one. 

Things now looked far from encouraging for the 
minor state officers, since this board had been de- 
clared valid by the highest court in the state, and since 
one of its members had already decided against the 
Republicans, and another had declared his intention 
to do so. It will be remembered that the decision 
of the board in the matter was to be final and con- 
clusive, according to the provisions of the Goebel law. 

Having little or no hope of justice from the con- 
test board, and still less in the decisions of the 
Legislature and its contest committees, the Republican 
leaders sought to arouse the people of the state to the 
enormity of the wrongs about to be perpetrated. It 
was thought by some that a thorough expose of the 
unlawful proceedings of the Democrats through the 
press, " the policemen of the nineteenth century," 



THE SHOOTING OF WILLIAM GOEBEL 121 

would do much to call a halt to their mad race for 
office. By others, of whom I was one, it was thought 
that mass meetings of the citizens of the state, 
at which strong resolutions could be passed and 
protests could be registered against the contemplated 
action of a few Democratic office-seekers and poli- 
ticians, would assist, at least, in showing the wide- 
spread indignation and disapproval on the part of the 
people. Others thought that the gathering at Frank- 
fort of the leading Republicans from all parts of the 
state would have a good effect on the contests. Others, 
again, thought that an openly stated purpose and a 
bold determination on the part of the Republicans to 
resist any unlawful attempt to eject them from their 
offices would help the cause; while not a few thought 
that, if large bodies of people from over the state could 
be brought to Frankfort to petition those in power, and 
remonstrate against their trampling under foot the 
most sacred rights of Kentucky freemen, the effect 
might be beneficial. The last course was adopted and 
I was assigned the duty of bringing some two thousand 
of the petitioners from the mountains of Kentucky. 
Others were assigned to other sections of the state. 
While these preparations were in progress the con- 
stitutional right to hold such a mass-meeting and to 
bear arms openly was not questioned. The Goebel side 
was heavily armed. Even members of the General 
Assembly almost staggered under the weight of 
weapons. 

When the mountain people, about twelve hundred 
strong, reached Frankfort, they discovered that people 
from other sections of the state had failed to come, as 
contemplated. The Republican leaders, while I was 



122 MY OWN STORY 

absent on my mission, had decided not to hold the 
mass-meeting, but the decision came too late for me to 
be notified of the change in plans, since I was in an in- 
accessible section of the state. 

About eleven o'clock on the morning of their arrival 
the mountain people held a meeting on the State Cap- 
itol steps, adopted resolutions to present to the Legis- 
lature, and, having accomplished the mission for which 
they came, the majority returned to their homes on 
the afternoon of that same day. 

The Goebel followers and Goebel press ascribed 
every dishonorable motive imaginable to the coming of 
the mountaineers to Frankfort. They called the 
crowd a " mountain army," that sought to settle a legal 
dispute by the use of the rifle ; in short, my good 
intentions were misrepresented, while I myself was tra- 
duced and vilified. Many people believed then, and 
still believe, that mountaineers are born with bowie 
knives in their brains. But never before were the 
strained feelings that have long existed between the 
highlanders and lowlanders of the state, and the preju- 
dices against the " mountaineers," as they are common- 
ly called by their lowland brethren, so deftly played 
upon. Some persons found no epithets too vile to 
apply to the mountain people, nothing too low and 
despicable with which to compare them. 

While these things were going on the proceedings 
in the contests for governor and lieutenant-governor 
were nearing an end, and it was practically certain 
that these contests would come up for a final vote 
the last of the week beginning January twenty-ninth. 
Between the hours of four and five o'clock on that 
day, Walter R. Day, the state treasurer, came to rny 



THE SHOOTING OF WILLIAM GOEBEL 123 

office, and we had a talk regarding the bringing to 
Frankfort of another crowd of men, mostly from 
western Kentucky, to petition the Legislature ; and on 
the morning of Tuesday, the thirtieth, it was decided 
that such a crowd of petitioners should be brought to 
petition the Legislature before it took a final vote on 
these contests. In company with Mr. Day, George W. 
Long, ex-state treasurer, J. L. Butler, F. Wharton 
Golden, and my brother, John L. Powers, I made a 
trip to Louisville for this purpose. 

As we were nearing Lagrange, a station on the 
Louisville and Nashville Railroad a few miles from 
the city of Louisville, news of the assassination of 
Senator Goebel flashed over the wires, and the story of 
an awful tragedy was told to a shocked and horrified 
people. 

Even those most violently opposed to Mr. Goebel — ■ 
those who had fought him with relentless determi- 
nation — stood with bowed heads, their consciences 
revolting at the cowardly crime committed against 
him, against society, and against the peace and dignity 
of the state. 

I had fought Goebel with the energy of my whole 
soul. He had led the movement to deprive me of the 
office to which I had been fairly and legally elected; 
but, when I heard that he had been killed in the State 
House yard, by an unknown marksman, from the 
second or third story of the Executive Building, I knew 
that every hope that had animated me, encouraged me 
in my fight for my rights, was blasted by the assassin's 
bullet. I said at the time : " It is a shame and an out- 
rage, and has ruined our chances for winning the 
contests." Every drop of blood in my body rebelled at 



124 MY OWN STORY 

the awful crime. An outbreak of some kind at Frank- 
fort had been feared by the people of the whole state, 
but no one dreamed of assassination. 

As far as the public knew, there were no eye-wit- 
nesses to the killing, and different theories were soon 
advanced as to the manner of Senator Goebel's taking- 
off. " Who fired the shot that killed Goebel ? " was the 
inquiry of thousands on the day of the tragedy. 

Over five years have passed away. In that time 
men have been indicted and convicted for alleged com- 
plicity in Goebel's murder, two men have been sen- 
tenced to be hanged for alleged complicity in the crime 
and another is serving a life-sentence in the peniten- 
tiary of Kentucky for the commission of the deed, 
while six others are out on bond awaiting trial. Twen- 
ty in all have been formally accused of complicity in 
the deed; hundreds have been informally accused. 
But Time, the unraveler of all mysteries, has been 
baffled thus far in bringing to light the guilty. The 
murderer has kept the secret of his guilt buried 
in his own heart. The twigs of the trees on Capitol 
Square have thus far whispered the dark story among 
themselves, and it has gone no farther. Yet the deed 
was committed on the Capitol Square of the state, in 
the center of the city of Frankfort, when the noonday 
sun was high in the heavens, and where interested 
citizens were gathered from nearly every town and 
county in the Commonwealth. 

Soon after the shot was fired, excited men crowded 
the streets, swearing vengeance against Goebel's 
assassin — " Blow up the State house ! " they cried, — 
while guards from the penitentiary and men from 
the local engine-houses rushed upon the scene, some 




Mob in streets after the shooting 



Soldiers guarding Capital Hotel 
from legislature 



Soldiers guarding Capital Theater 
from legislature 



Under the governor's windows 
The Capital Hotel, Frankfort, Kentucky 

SCENES IX FRAXKFORT 



THE SHOOTING OF WILLIAM GOEBEL 125 

with guns in their hands. It was the opinion of the 
Repubhcans that an effort would be made to mob 
the inmates of the Executive Building; so the local 
military company, which had been quartered at the 
arsenal since the November election, was immediately 
brought to the State House Square, where it was 
stationed on guard. The entire military force of the 
state was called out that day, and came pouring into 
Frankfort that afternoon and night. A short time 
after the military had taken charge of Capitol Square, 
no one was permitted to enter the grounds without a 
pass from the officer in charge. 

Threats were made against all State officials, but 
particularly against the life of Taylor. For days, it 
is said, desperate men lay in wait for him ; and the air 
was surcharged with gossip that, as soon as he again 
appeared upon the streets, his life would be taken, 
as the life of Goebel had been taken. The city was 
filled with armed Goebel partizans. Mob violence was 
imminent. The situation was balanced on the ragged 
edge of civil war. Frankfort was a veritable powder- 
house, liable to explode at any moment. From time to 
time, for several days, excited persons would rush on 
the State House Square to bring the news that a mob 
was forming, or preparing to form, and that it intended 
to kill all the Republican officials and take possession 
of the offices. Thus the anxious days, pregnant with 
danger, passed away. 



CHAPTER XIX 

MAKING POLITICAL CAPITAL 

Demand for revenge — Governor Taylor convenes the Legis- 
lature at London — Democrats declare Goebel and Beck- 
ham elected and later falsify the records of the general 
assembly — A proclamation — Senator Goebel's death is 
announced, and Beckham takes the oath of office as gov- 
ernor 

The Indignation which followed the killing of Mr. 
Goebel swept over the state like a wild storm. Revenge 
filled the hearts of his followers ; they were ready to 
go to almost any length in retaliation. The Demo- 
cratic leaders took advantage of the popular 
sentiment that, if Senator Goebel was killed by a Re- 
publican, the entire Republican party should be held 
responsible, and that it was, by its guilt, unfit to be in- 
trusted with the affairs of the state. They accordingly 
made an early and urgent appeal to the contest com- 
mittees and contest boards to take speedy action. The 
contest committees held a hurried meeting. The Goe- 
bel majority adopted a report unseating Taylor and 
Marshall, and seating Goebel and Beckham. 

The members of the committees were dumb, how- 
ever, as to the grounds for the action, and equally 
silent as to what Republican votes had been rejected, 
or the reasons therefor. They had decided and that 
was all-sufficient. The Republicans fully realized 

126 



MAKING POLITICAL CAPITAL 127 

that, if the general assembly was permitted to meet 
on the next day, or indeed, at any time, while the ex- 
citement was at so high a pitch, it would unseat Gov- 
ernor Taylor and Lieutenant-governor Marshall. It 
was decided, therefore, to delay, if possible, the action 
of the Legislature, prevent it from seating Goebel and 
Beckham, and also avert the probability of trouble by 
having it assemble elsewhere. So Taylor adjourned 
it to meet at London, Kentucky, February sixth. 

The next morning, however, the Democratic mem- 
bers of the general assembly, on their way to the legis- 
lative halls, marched through the State House grounds, 
between a line of state troops, only to be halted on the 
second floor, at the head of the stairs, by two soldiers 
with crossed bayonets. South Trimble, chairman of 
the joint session, then and there adjourned the general 
assembly to meet immediately at the City Hall, but the 
Taylor soldiers again prevented a meeting and, later, 
Chairman Trimble a second time adjourned the gen- 
eral assembly to meet subject to his call. 

That night the Goebel leaders and the Goebel mem- 
bers of the general assembly issued a statement to 
the public in which they said there was no danger 
in Frankfort, except that arising from the presence 
of " hordes of armed mountain Republicans," whose 
presence in Frankfort was the " logical and inevitable " 
result, if not " the contemplated culmination," of the 
assassination of Senator Goebel, and that Taylor had 
called out the military " without cause." On that 
same night, at the Capital Hotel, they declared Goebel 
and Beckham elected. It has since been established 
by proof, however, that there never was a meeting of 
either house of the general assembly, joint or separate, 



128 MY OWN STORY 

on that night, but that Senator Goebel was declared 
governor by passing around a paper to such members 
as could be found to sign it; and that most of those 
who did sign this paper, did so in Judge Pryor's room 
in small groups, and immediately withdrew. This 
paper announced that by the decision of the general 
assembly, in separate and joint session, William Goebel 
was governor of Kentucky. The journals of the 
House and Senate were ** fixed " and made to state that 
Goebel and Beckham had been declared legally elected 
governor and lieutenant-governor of the state by a 
majority of the House and Senate, in separate and 
joint sessions in the " legislative halls." 

As it was an established fact that the Goebel Legis- 
lature held neither joint nor separate session in the 
legislative halls, the Republicans were safe in declar- 
ing that the journals of the two houses had been made 
to speak and record an untruth. The Goebel partizans 
hoped that the statements in these journals would be 
declared beyond the power of the courts to question, 
which eventually proved to be true, thus giving the 
Democrats the offices without further controversy. 

The proclamation declared further that no violence 
had been committed or attempted in the city of Frank- 
fort, except that which had '* resulted from, and been 
the act of, the bands of lawless men which Taylor had 
brought to the capital, and quartered in the Capitol and 
executive offices, from the windows of which last- 
named building, on Jamiary thirtieth, igoo, an assas- 
sirL fired, and mortally wounded William Goebel." 
They said further that Taylor had filled ''the capital 
of the state with reckless armed men, ivho had assassin- 
ated an honorable member of the general assembly." 



MAKING POLITICAL CAPITAL 129 

So, on the day following the killing of Senator Goebel, 
the Democratic politicians, for their own political pur- 
pose, formulated these accusations against the Republi- 
cans, and, upon these identical charges, the Republi- 
cans have been called to answer in the criminal courts 
of Kentucky. They charged that Senator Goebel was 
assassinated by a member or members of a Republi- 
can conspiracy; that the bringing to Frankfort of the 
mountain people formed a part of the conspiracy ; that 
some unknown mountaineer fired from a window in 
the Executive Building the shot that killed ^Goebel ; 
and that the militia was called out " without cause," 
which was easily converted into '' for the purpose of 
protecting the assassin and those implicated." Thus, 
from the brains of Democratic politicians, and out of 
political necessities, arose the criminal prosecutions 
which have disgraced the name of Kentucky, and to 
which I shall call attention later. 

At six-forty o'clock on the evening of February 
third, 1900, it is said, William Goebel passed away 
without apparent pain. At seven o'clock, J. C. W. 
Beckham took the oath of office as governor, having 
been sworn in as acting governor about noon. 



CHAPTER XX 

AN APPEAL TO THE COURTS 

Sorrow over the death of, Senator Goebel — Governor Taylor 
rejects tlie Louisville "Peace Agreement" — General 
assembly reconvenes at Frankfort — Two legislative bodies 
and two sets of state officials 

The announcement of ^Ir. Goebel's death under any 
circumstances and at any time would have been cause 
for deep and widespread grief among his many friends. 
That the light of his life went out at such a time and 
in such a manner catised many hearts deep sorrow and 
called forth from many pens eulogiums of the de- 
ceased leader. A lasting disgrace had coiAe to the 
state. And while the Democratic headquarters at 
Frankfort particularly were shrouded in gloom, despair 
hung over the Republican camp as well. There may 
have been Republican leaders at Frankfort who did not 
regret that William Goebel was assassinated; but so 
far as I know, all deplored it. Some were incensed 
because of the cowardly act ; others foresaw the irre- 
trievable injury done the Republicans in the pending 
contest. While the people did not know who was 
responsible for Mr. Goebel's death, they did know that 
he had been assassinated on the State House Square; 
and that the state buildings were in the possession of 
the Republicans. 

From this, many reasoned that the Republicans did 

130 



AN APPEAL TO THE COURTS 131 

the deed ; and that possibly many were impHcatcd in 
it by reason of the circumstances surrounding the 
assassination. But, deeply as the Republican leaders 
deplored the tragic end of Mr. Goebel, they certainly 
felt in no way, as far as I know, responsible for his 
death. Pie had been fairly and honestly defeated at 
the polls, and was attempting to have himself de- 
clared governor of the state. It became the individual 
duty of every lover of liberty within the confines of 
the Commonwealth to oppose, with all his might, along 
legitimate lines, the efforts of Goebel and others in their 
work of trying to have themselves declared elected 
after they had been defeated. President Roosevelt, 
then governor of New York, took the view that it was 
not only the right, but the duty, of Republicans to 
hold the offices to which they had been elected. On 
February third, in commenting upon the Kentucky 
situation, Mr. Roosevelt said : '' Mr. Taylor is gover- 
nor by every principle of law and equity ; and he and 
his followers, of course, should resist to the last ex- 
tremity the reckless and unscrupulous conspirators who 
are endeavoring to do by violence after election what 
they failed to accomplish by the most scandalous frauds 
prior to and during election. The sole and individual 
responsibility of all bloodshed, past and to come, lies 
with the same conspirators, and with all that in any way 
abet them." 

Monday, February fifth, found the Republican sen- 
ators and representatives in London ; while a number 
of the Democratic senators and representatives were 
in Louisville, with the Intention of holding the real 
session of the Legislature in that place. Many of the 
leaders of both parties were also in Louisville, at the 



132 MY OWN STORY 

Gait House, in pursuance of a previous understanding, 
trying to come to some agreement by which the inten- 
sity of the situation might be reUeved and civil 
strife averted. An agreement was finally reached, 
known as the " peace agreement." The principal 
stipulation of the agreement was that the Republicans 
should be allowed the privilege of surrendering their 
offices, and get in return the promise of a fair election 
law. Taylor, after much hesitation, refused to sign 
the " peace agreement ;" instead, he issued an order re- 
convening the Legislature at Frankfort. 

When Monday, February nineteenth, came, it found 
the members of the two factions of the general assem- 
bly in their accustomed places. The feeling existing 
among them, however, was far from friendly. Lieu- 
tenant-governor Marshall and Senator L. H. Carter, 
the Democratic presiding officer of the Senate, were 
both present — and both claiming the right to preside 
over the Senate — both asserting that they intended to 
do so. When these two gentlemen met, they shook 
hands ostentatiously, each with the air of, " I am on 
hand and ready to preside." Each kept a watchful 
eye on the other ; and when the moment came for con- 
vening the Senate, both began rapping for order simul- 
taneously. It was not surprising that two succeeded 
in obtaining that for which, upon former occasions, 
one had been amply sufficient. The much-needed 
prayer was then offered; and the dual session of the 
Senate was begun. 

Each presiding officer was recognized by members 
of his own party only ; while the independent Demo- 
crats looked on tranquilly, at the prosperous (?) and 
thriving (?) condition of the Senate. Mr. Marshall 



AN APPEAL TO THE COURTS 133 

ordered the journal to be read. Mr. Carter instantly 
called for motions, petitions and resolutions. Each 
felt that he must keep in constant action in order to 
proclaim his authority. The clerk of the Senate was 
Democratic, so he began reading the proceedings of the 
Democrats at Louisville. To relieve the tension of the 
situation, a Republican senator made a motion to ad- 
journ. Mr. Marshall put it; declared it carried; and 
formally adjourned the Senate, after making a request 
of the clerk to record him as its presiding officer. The 
Republicans then retired. The Democrats continued 
without adjournment and this line of conduct was 
adhered to throughout the entire session of the Senate. 
After the Republicans had retired on the first day of 
the double assembly, the Democrats reaffirmed, re- 
enacted and ratified the action of the meeting of the 
Democratic members held in the Capital Hotel, de- 
claring Goebel governor and Beckham lieutenant-gov- 
ernor. 

Just as there were two Legislatures attempting to 
serve in the capacity of the regularly elected lawmak- 
ing assembly of the state, there were two chief execu- 
tives seeking to control the gubernatorial affairs 
of strife-ridden Kentucky. Taylor was still perform- 
ing the duties of the office of governor in the Executive 
Building, while Beckham was attempting to perform a 
similar service in a room at the Capital Hotel in Frank- 
fort. Taylor and his advisers took the position that the 
decision reached by certain members of the Legislature, 
at the Capital Hotel, depriving him of the governor- 
ship, was null and void. 

There was, however, a grave contingency which 
might arise. Suppose the Democrats should institute 



134 MY OWN STORY 

suit in Judge Cantrill's court, claiming that they had 
been adjudged the offices by the proper legal tribunal, 
and that the Republicans refused to vacate them ? The 
Republicans would then be between Scylla and Cha- 
rybdis. They would either be obliged to obey the man- 
date of the circuit court, or carry their case to the 
court of appeals, the majority of which was Demo- 
cratic. Before either side knew what was being done 
by the other, conjectures were made without number. 
Each opponent prepared to enjoin the other before it 
might itself be enjoined. The Goebel adherents made 
hasty preparations to file their suit in the Franklin 
circuit court, where they had applied for and obtained 
relief upon former occasions. This court was their 
favorite resort, when the action of any court was needed 
to further their ends. Taylor filed his suit in the Jef- 
ferson circuit court. In two hours after Taylor had 
entered suit at Louisville, Beckham had filed a similar 
suit against Taylor in the friendly FrankHn circuit 
court. The attorneys for both sides met and agreed 
to consolidate the cases, and have them tried in the 
Jefferson circuit court — the defeated party reserving 
the right, however, to carry the case to the court of 
appeals, and failing there, to the supreme court of the 
United States. It was agreed also that matters should 
remain in statu quo until a final decision was rendered 
by the supreme court of the United States, to which 
the defeated side was to submit. 

It fell to the lot of Judge Emmett Field, of the com- 
mon pleas division of the Jefferson circuit court, to try 
the case. In the meantime, the state board of election 
commissioners had rendered its decision, unseating all 
the Republican minor state officials and giving their 



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AN APPEAL TO THE COURTS 135 

seats to the Democratic contestants. The cases were 
later carried to the court of appeals, where all the Re- 
publican contestees were denied relief except the at- 
torney-general ; and his case did not reach the court of 
appeals until after the Republicans had a majority on 
the appellate bench. 

In the interim, however, the newly-declared officials, 
after having taken the oath of office, hurried to 
the State House, to make formal demand for pos- 
session of the respective offices. It was about five 
o'clock on the afternoon of February twenty-sixth 
that Mr. C. B. Hill, the newly-made secretary of 
state, came into my office, preparatory to demand- 
ing possession of it. He was accompanied by several 
friends, and some of the newly-declared Goebel 
minor state officers. This was the first time I had ever 
met my opponent. Not only had the claimants for the 
offices, and the friends of the different sides, held aloof 
from one another ; but, in Frankfort, the social lines 
were as closely drawn as the political affiliations were 
distinct. I knew that the office of the secretary of 
state was mine by right for four years. I felt, how- 
ever, that Mr. Hill was entitled to the courtesy and 
consideration due to any guest, so I received him with 
courtesy and offered him the very best chair in the 
office. After a few moments of rather strained con- 
versation, Mr. Hill informed me that he had been 
elected to the office of secretary of state ; that he had 
taken the necessary oath, and had called to ask per- 
mission to take possession of the office. I told him that 
the tax-payers of the state would object to maintaining 
two secretaries of state in one office ; and that as I had 
been elected to that position, I must decline to resign 



136 MY OWN STORY 

it to another. By this time there were faint smiles on 
the faces of all present; and my visitor took his de- 
parture, with an invitation from me to call again. 

All the other Republicans, except Clifton J. Pratt, 
refused to vacate their offices. The Democratic claim- 
ants marched back to the Capital Hotel, and within an 
hour had filed, in Judge Cantrill's court, their previous- 
ly prepared suits to enjoin the Republicans from 
further attempting to perform the duties of their re- 
spective offices. 

On the next day, the state was blessed, or cursed, as 
the case may be, with a completely established dual 
government. The Democratic claimants opened their 
offices in the Capital Hotel; and the Republican state 
officers retained possession of the offices on State 
House Square. 



CHAPTER XXI 

DEMOCRATIC SLEUTHS BEGIN WORK 

Decision against Republicans — Action of Legislature final — 
Goebel partizans threaten to take forcible possession of the 
offices — Situation becomes warlike — The Democrats ap- 
propriate one hundred thousand dollars to discover and 
punish the assassin 

On the tenth of March, Judge Field handed down 
his decision. It favored the Democrats ; for he de- 
clared, on the ground that his court had no jurisdiction 
to try the cases, that the decision of the Legislature was 
final and conclusive, and not subject to review. The 
Republicans at once carried the cases to the court of 
appeals. Pending the result of this action, on every 
hand the more rabid among the Goebel partizans said 
they did not propose waiting for the decision of any 
more courts, but intended to go to the State House, 
throw Taylor out, and forcibly take possession of the 
offices. Upon this announcement, the aspect of affairs 
began to look warlike. In truth, bloodshed and war 
seemed imminent ; the situation was indeed so alarm- 
ing that the War Department at Washmgton was im- 
plored to disarm the rival factions. In the meantime 
the Democratic branch of the general assembly pro- 
ceeded to pass a bill, appropriating the sum of one 
hundred thousand dollars for the ostensible purpose of 
apprehending and punishing the murderers of Mr. 

137 



138 MY OWN STORY 

Goebel, always assuming, of course, that the murder- 
ers were RepubHcan conspirators. Of this amount 
twenty-five thousand dollars was to be set apart simply 
for the purpose of invesitgating the crime and the 
" clues " that might lead to the detection of its perpe- 
trators. When the law went into effect, five thousand 
dollars of the fund was offered by the five reward com- 
missioners, who, in the meantime, had been appointed, 
for the arrest and conviction of each principal as well 
as each conspirator. 

The appropriation of this enormous fund meant that 
some one would have to suffer for Goebel's murder, 
whether he was guilty or not; and that the claim of 
Goebel's political heirs — that he met his death by 
reason of a huge Republican conspiracy — would be 
established, whether right or wrong, if money could 
bring it about. 

The late Thomas C. Campbell and a number of 
diligent sleuths were immediately employed, under 
instructions to obtain all the testimony necessary to 
sustain the " Republican conspiracy " theory. Those 
who made the *' proper " investigation were entitled 
to the twenty-five thousand dollars set apart by the re- 
ward commission to pay the workers in that particu- 
lar line. Mr. Campbell and the detectives, it is 
needless to say, made the " proper " investigation. 
They lost no time. It was necessary to establish first 
a connection between the place from which the shots, 
five in all, were fired and the Republican officials. This 
would bring the murder to their door. The office of 
the secretary of state was on the first floor of the 
Executive Building and in the southwestern corner of 
it, the corner nearest the spot where Senator Goebel fell 



DEMOCRATIC SLEUTHS BEGIN WORK 139 

mortally wounded, and, therefore, the most convenient 
point from which the shot could have been fired. I 
occupied that office, which was a private one. Conse- 
quently, if it could be shown with any degree of cer- 
tainty that the shot came from this office, it would in 
the minds of many directly implicate the Republican, 
party in the assassination by connecting the crime with 
one of the Republican state officials. 

This was the theory of the prosecution, and, once 
decided on, it was most widely advertised. The first 
announcement was made on the eighth of February. 
Immediately on recognizing its meaning, I gave out a 
statement to the effect that, as far as I might be con- 
cerned, I was on the train near Louisville at the mo- 
ment when Mr. Goebel was shot. 

Previously to this, however, two detectives had 
visited all the offices in the Executive Building and had 
obtained from each office a statement as to the where- 
abouts of the occupants at the time of the shooting. 
This was unhesitatingly given. When the two detec- 
tives came to my office I. was alone. It had already 
been charged that those instrumental in bringing the 
mountaineers to Frankfort on the twenty-fifth of Janu- 
ary were to be indicted for the killing of Goebel. 
Knowing that I had assisted in doing this, I was as 
non-committal as possible to the detectives, particularly 
as I had no friend present to bear witness to what might 
be said during the conversation. I was so placed that 
if I refused to state where I was at the time Mr. Goebel 
was killed, the refusal could and, I knew, would be used 
against me; so I told the detectives that I was out of 
Frankfort and that no one was in my office. After this 
fact had been ascertained, there appeared no difficulty 



140 MY OWN STORY 

in the way of choosing my office as the place from 
which the shots had been fired. No one was in the 
office, consequently there was no one to deny any 
charge made. The prosecution was gleeful regarding 
the '* disclosure " made by me and immediately asserted 
through the press, with more vehemence than ever, 
that the shot came from my office, and at the same time 
insinuated that I was implicated in the murder. 

The reason for this was manifest. I was a young 
man. It would be much easier to convince the public 
that the ambitions of a young man would carry him 
into the machinations of such a criminal conspiracy 
than it would be in the case of an older and more ex- 
perienced person. I had been an outspoken partizan 
and extremely active in many of the meetings and con- 
ferences in Frankfort. I had brought a number of 
mountain people to Frankfort, and it was claimed that 
the death of Goebel resulted from this. I am a moun- 
tain man, and the prejudice against the mountaineers 
was such that the public was expected to swallow 
with open-mouthed credulity any charge that might be 
brought against any of them. My office was the most 
probable place from which the shot could have been 
fired. If the prosecution could establish with any 
degree of certainty that the fatal shot came from my 
office then the prosecution felt that it would not be hard 
to convince the country that I must have had fore- 
knowledge of the crime. Last of all, I was a Repub- 
lican official and stood sufficiently high in the party to 
reflect discredit upon it if the prosecution could succeed 
in implicating me. 

Those of my friends who saw the drift of affairs 
urged me to leave Frankfort and to remain away until 



DEMOCRATIC SLEUTHS BEGIN WORK 141 

the excitement of the hour had passed and men had 
regained their reason. It seemed to me, however, that 
to leave under fire and while I was being accused of 
murder would be construed into a confession of guilt, 
so I determined to stand my ground. 

From the day that the Goebel adherents began to 
charge the Republicans with the assassination of 
Goebel, it had been my idea for the Republican party to 
secure the services of good and reliable detectives to 
have the guilty man discovered. Most of those with 
whom I had talked agreed with me, but urged that the 
services of a good detective would cost at least ten 
dollars a day and expenses and, as it might take months 
to run the assassin to earth, there was not sufficient 
money on hand. I did not have money of my own 
with which to ferret out the crime. I was poor when 
the campaign began and poorer when it ended, but I 
saw the necessity of assistance, and employed J. B. 
Matthews of Somerset, Kentucky, who had done some 
work of that kind. He did what he could to solve the 
mystery and later another detective, T. R. Griffin, of 
Somerset, Kentucky, was called in at my instance. 



CHAPTER XXII 

MY ARREST 

I visit my father and mother — Threatened with arrest, I seek 
safety in flight, but am taken from a train at Lexington — 
I pass a gloomy, apprehensive night in a cell 

About this time I went to my home in Knox County 
to see and consult with my father and mother. I told 
them that from every indication I was likely to be 
charged with the murder and thrown into jail, and, 
while I was absolutely innocent of the charge, that my 
chance of being fairly dealt with was slender. After 
earnest reflection they concurred in the opinion that I 
should face my accusers and undergo whatever ordeal 
might be before me. 

When I again returned to Frankfort I resumed the 
duties of my office. But I was to gain no respite from 
anxiety and care. On the ninth of March, about mid- 
night, I was aroused from sleep, told that W. H. 
Culton, of McKee, Jackson County, then a clerk in the 
auditor's office, had been arrested at his home in South 
Frankfort on the charge of being implicated in the 
murder of Senator Goebel, and that warrants of arrest 
had been issued for Charles Finley, ex-secretary of 
state under the Bradley administration, Captain John 
Davis, policeman on Capitol Square during the Bradley 
and Taylor administrations, my brother, John L. 
Powers, and myself. 

142 



MY ARREST 143 

The news came to me like a crushing blow. I was 
boarding with Captain Davis, who lived on Lewis 
Street, near State House Square, and he and I went 
immediately for consultation and advice to the rooms 
of ex-Governor W. O. Bradley and Judge W. H. Yost, 
who were boarding at the same place. Ex-Governor 
Bradley was not in and Judge Yost advised us to make 
our way over to the State House Square. If we were 
arrested that night, he said, we would, in all probability, 
be mobbed before morning, and after we reached the 
State House we could determine upon what was best 
to be done. 

Captain Davis and I had not been admitted to the 
State House Square more than five minutes before 
the officers and police passed down Lewis Street to the 
home of Captain Davis to arrest us. We went directly 
to my office to hold a conference with Judge Yost and 
others. All present were of opinion that, since I 
had been virtually robbed of my office and then charged 
with being in a conspiracy to kill Goebel, my conviction 
would be a political necessity; that the Goebel follow- 
ers could not afford to take from me the office to which 
I had been elected and then bring against me the foul 
charge of murder without making good that charge ; 
and that they had one hundred thousand dollars at their 
command with which to substantiate it. I knew I 
might as well try to gather up the foam of the ocean 
as try to get a fair hearing from men frenzied with 
passion and drunk with rage. I realized the force of 
these arguments and for the first time thought seriously 
of securing my liberty and possibly my life by flight. 
I had stood at my post of duty until I could stand there 
no longer. I had done all that honor demanded and 



144 MY OWN STORY 

duty required. I could do no more ; I owed something 
to myself ; I felt it a duty to protect my life until such 
time as the people would not in their madness take it 
from me. 

The next day we learned that the five of us, who had 
been accused, were charged with being accessories 
before the fact to the murder of William Goebel, and 
that warrants for our arrest had been sworn out by one 
T. B. Cromwell, of Lexington, Kentucky, a man un- 
known to me, whose chief business was that of a 
detective and who incidentally was a newspaper cor- 
respondent. Section 31 of the Kentucky Criminal 
Code prescribes that before a warrant for arrest can 
be issued in a felony case an affidavit must be filed, 
stating the facts upon which it is sought to secure the 
warrant. Upon examination it was found that in 
these cases no such affidavit had been filed. We had 
no idea what the prosecution proposed proving, and, if, 
in the very first move, the fundamental principles of 
the law were to be ignored and men were to be charged 
with the blackest offense known to the law upon the 
mere statement of an irresponsible detective, I thought 
that safety lay In flight; so I determined to escape the 
wrath of a passion-ruled party, partizan courts and the 
perjury and corruption consequent to the enormous 
** blood-money " fund. 

Captain Davis and I decided to get away, if possible, 
on the night of the tenth of March. The question 
arose, how was it to be accomplished? The streets of 
Frankfort were carefully guarded, while State House 
Square was surrounded with detectives and men in- 
terested in our apprehension. It was finally decided 
that twenty-five or thirty soldiers should be despatched 




The Capitol. Goebel fell at the right of the fountain 

Taylor soldiers on guard 
Governor Taylor's desk ; Captain John Davis on the right 

Governor Taylor at his desk 



ON THE CAPITOL GROUNDS 



MY ARREST 145 

to London, ostensibly on duty of some kind and that 
Captain Davis and I should go with them in uniform. 
And I might here add that this attempted escape has 
been the strongest point made by the prosecution 
against me, since it is now known that the Taylor 
pardon accepted by Captain Davis (at the same time 
I accepted a similar one for alleged complicity in the 
Goebel murder), was no proof of guilt, since even the 
prosecution now admits that he is an innocent man. 
His pardon, like mine, was accepted as a possible shield 
against judicial murder. Holland Whittaker, now ad- 
mitted to be innocent, accepted a similar pardon for a 
similar purpose. 

A few moments before the early night Chesapeake 
and Ohio train for eastern Kentucky was due at 
Frankfort, a squad of soldiers, fully uniformed and 
carrying guns over their shoulders, fell into line in the 
hallway of the Executive Building. Captain Davis and 
I took our places in the ranks and we all marched to 
the station. Just as the train was leaving we hastily 
boarded it ; a number of police and detectives got 
aboard, no doubt suspecting a ruse. As we sped along 
from Frankfort to Lexington, I was revolving in my 
mind the scenes through which I had passed, and won- 
dering what the future would bring to me. The fact 
that I was being forced to flee ; forced to play the part 
of the guilty ; forced to leave my post of duty to escape 
unreasoning wrath, as well as the courts, whose duty 
it is not to scourge but to shield the innocent from op- 
pression and wrong — these were the thoughts burning 
themselves into my very soul. I had never run before, 
but had always met responsibilities, of whatever charac- 
ter, face to face. The sensation was a new and most 



146 MY OWN STORY 

miserable one. A thousand conflicting doubts and de- 
terminations arose in my mind while on that train. 
From time to time I felt like leaping off, making my 
way back to Frankfort, and saying to those who were 
seeking innocent blood that I was ready to meet any 
and all charges that might be preferred against me. 
Then the considerations that had suggested my flight 
asserted themselves, and I put aside the impulse. 

We continued our journey. When we reached Lex- 
ington a great crowd had assembled at the depot. Our 
attempted escape had been telephoned to Lexington, 
fifteen hundred dollars offered for our arrest, and 
the civil authorities of the city, together with a 
company of state guards and a number of interested 
citizens, had come to arrest us. Our car was nearly 
full of soldiers, but by an oversight of the commanding 
officer, they did not seem to understand they were there 
to protect Captain Davis and myself from arrest. 
When the train stopped at the depot near the Phoenix 
Hotel, the police and city officials were permitted to 
make their way into the car where we were sitting, 
and in a very short time it was filled with officers with 
drawn revolvers. Our soldiers had long rifles, and, 
even had they attempted to resist the arrest of Captain 
Davis and myself, they were in no position to do so, 
and very likely would have been killed or forced to sur- 
render. I was recognized by some of the officers, im- 
mediately covered with drawn revolvers, and my sur- 
render was demanded. I was unarmed and unresisting, 
and made no reply. I was seized and dragged from the 
car into the crowd outside ; my overcoat was jerked off 
and my shirt torn from my body. On toward the 
county jail the crowd moved, cursing me, and applying 



MY ARREST 147 

to me every abusive epithet that excited passion could 
use. Still I offered no resistance, and uttered not a 
word. 

When v^e reached the county jail I was immediately 
taken to the jail office, where a suggestion to search me 
was made by one of the rabble. Against this I raised 
my voice in protest for the first time, saying that 
no one had a legal right to search me. No sooner had 
the words fallen from my lips, than I was struck on 
the top of the head from the rear, either with a billy 
or " knucks ; " for a rnoment I staggered, and then fell 
unconscious. When I recovered, the blood was flow- 
ing profusely from my head. The jailer, Mr. Morgan 
Gentry, then appeared upon the scene. He took charge 
of me and escorted me to the third story of the jail. 
In the meantime the news of our arrest had spread over 
the city like wildfire, and newspaper reporters were 
soon on the scene seeking to interview us. I felt the 
necessity of giving to the public an explanation of my 
actions. That my motives might not be distorted, I 
decided to write a statement myself. Paper and pencil 
were supplied me, and, as soon as my wound was 
dressed, I sat up on the cot in the jail cell and wrote 
the following statement, which was copied in all the 
Kentucky papers friendly to my cause : 

I have nothing to say except that I desire a speedy trial ; 
and I have no fear of its result before a non-partizan court 
and jury. I have never had, in the once threatened, nor have 
I now in the actual prosecution, but two things to fear; 
and they are the evil and corrupt influence that one hundred 
thousand dollars can have in the prosecution of any case, and 
the political influence that will be incident to these trials. 
That these are not small things to fear, any sober-thinking 
man must confess. I am innocent of the charge preferred 



148 MY OWN STORY 

against me. I am willing for the public to know my entire 
connection with the very bitter strife in this campaign. 

When arrested I was leaving what I thought would 
be causeless persecution. How fully has been realized 
my fear that I should be tried by a partizan court, and 
a jury composed of my political enemies, the following 
pages will show. To what extent my foreboding that 
the corrupt influence of one hundred thousand dollars 
" blood-money " and partizan political hatred would 
succeed in thwarting justice and enthroning wrong, the 
events which have followed plainly point out. Wheth- 
er the prosecution against me has been " causeless per- 
secution," as I then predicted it would be, I will let 
those who peruse these pages judge for themselves; 
and whether my fear of the enormous corruption fund 
and the political nature of the prosecution was merely 
visionary, or founded upon fact, I will let the public 
decide. Whether it was wise, under existing circum- 
stances, to accept the pardon from Governor Taylor for 
the offense alleged against me, and then agree to waive 
all rights acquired under it, provided the prosecution 
would allow me to be tried outside of Judge Cantrill's 
district, and by a jury divided equally as to politics, I 
will also let others determine. 

That night after my friends had left, I lay down 
on the small cot in the third story of the jail. I was 
alone, Captain Davis having been moved to another 
cell in the bastile. The tread of the soldiers on guard 
below, and the mutterings of an angry and excited 
crowd without, could be heard. The scenes through 
which I had passed, and the pain from the blow I had 
received at the hands of some unknown coward, while 
I was defenseless and in charge of the officers of the 



MY ARREST 149 

law, left me little prepared for sleep. For a time 
thoughts, colored by my gloomy surroundings, crowded 
thick and fast on imagination's fruitful soil. Some- 
times I wondered if I might not be dragged from the 
jail as I had been dragged from the train, and forced 
to give up my life to a hungry and infuriated mob. 
Finally a troubled sleep came to me, and when I awoke 
the next morning from a hideous nightmare, it was 
only to find the reality more horrible than my dreams, — 
my liberty restrained by iron bars, massive walls, steel- 
latticed windows and bolted doors. But great sorrows, 
like great ecstasies, are not long sustained. Nature is 
kind and relieves the strain. Weeping endureth for a 
night, hut joy cometh in the morning. 



CHAPTER XXIII 

FROM LEXINGTON TO LOUISVILLE 

Nocturnal visit of officers to my cell — Handcuffed, I am taken 
from jail, driven across country to a railway and hurried 
to Louisville — A defense fund of ten thousand dollars 

It was the Sabbath, March eleventh, 1900. The 
sun was shining beautifully; crowds were thronging 
the vicinity of the jail, while newsboys were crying out 
the account of my arrest as an inducement to passers- 
by to purchase their papers. Many of the newspapers 
and magazines had even at this time, as they have 
since, kind things to say of me. Many people, it 
has proved, have remained my unfaltering friends 
through evil as through good report. Here and now 
I thank these friends, both press and personal, whom I 
know or may not know, with all my heart. Those 
words of cheer and comfort which came to me at the 
beginning of my struggle, when my brain was dazed 
and my heart crushed and bruised by the shock and 
horror of my position, I deeply and gratefully prize. 

Sunday night, or rather Monday morning, about 
two o'clock I waked to find myself surrounded by men 
in the uniform of policemen, and others who wore 
citizens' clothes. I was told to get up ; when I hesi- 
tated the command was repeated. I asked for what 
I was wanted, and was told that they " had come for 
me." I asked where I was to be taken, but the only 

150 



FROM LEXINGTON TO LOUISVILLE 151 

answer I received was to " get up ; " that they were 
" going to take me a Httle distance." I protested. 
The statement from them that they would only take 
me out a short distance, together with the late hour 
of the night, filled me with foreboding. Was a mob to 
end further legal controversy? I did not know, and 
was persistent in trying to find out, while my nocturnal 
visitors were equally determined that I should not. 

Captain Davis and I were handcuffed together, the 
jail doors were thrown open, and we were marched 
down the street to a two-horse conveyance prepared 
for our reception. This we were commanded to enter. 
Four other men entered with us. We were driven 
over a pike leading out of Lexington. What did this 
trip into the country mean? If we were being trans- 
ferred to another bastile, why was not the usual mode 
of travel adopted ? Why was the dead of night chosen 
for our journey? Why were we kept in ignorance of 
our destination? 

On over the country roads we went, shivering 
from cold and filled with vague foreboding. After 
driving steadily for several hours a small town came 
into sight. I felt fairly confident now that we were 
being removed to another jail, and that mob violence 
was not intended. We were in fact being taken 
to the Louisville jail. After we were locked in cells 
there, I found that W. H. Culton and Holland Whit- 
taker, who were arrested in Frankfort soon after 
Goebel was shot, had also been driven across the coun- 
try from the Frankfort to the Shelby ville jail, the 
night before, and later lodged in the Louisville jail in 
order to prevent their being mobbed in Frankfort. 
This was the first time I had ever seen Mr. Whittaker, 



152 MY OWN STORY 

although I was charged with procuring him, among 
others, to kill Senator Goebel. 

On the day of my arrival at Louisville, and for days 
following, my friends visited me in numbers. Among 
them was my good friend. Doctor T. H. Baker, post- 
master at Louisville. What to do, I did not know. 
I had no money and no lawyers. How could I prepare 
for a trial without means? What were the few hun- 
dred dollars that I might obtain, pitted against one 
hundred thousand dollars, and that sum augmented 
also by the entire resources of the whole state? I 
knew, moreover, that the expenses incident to my trial 
would be enormous. In Kentucky, the defendant pays 
the entire expenses incident to his defense; the state 
pays all the expenses for the prosecution. But I made 
up my mind that, whatever might be the disadvantages 
of my situation, whatever the advantages of that of the 
prosecution, whatever the result might be, I would bat- 
tle to the very best of my ability against any odds that 
might oppose me, fight to the bitter end and maintain 
my innocence and honor to the last. I am an optimist 
and believe right triumphs always if it is contended for 
with sufficient trust and courage. I felt sure then that 
however brightly the names of those responsible for my 
arrest were temporarily glittering in the light of popu- 
lar favor, some day they would be lost in the fog of 
oblivion and obscurity. But Fate, who sits and spins 
the web of life, was and is now, for that matter, 
against me. 

In a short time after I had reached Louisville the 
Honorable R. W. Knott, editor of the Evening Post, 
Colonel John H. Ward, Colonel Morris B. Belknap, 
Colonel Andrew Cowan, and Mr. Donald McDonald, 



FROM LEXINGTON TO LOUISVILLE 153 

all men of means and among the most influential and 
prominent of Louisville's citizens, formed a defense 
committee and set about raising funds to defend the 
accused. The object of this move was to shield no 
guilty man, but to see that each of the accused was ac- 
corded a fair trial. The work of the Louisville defense 
committee progressed admirably. A fund of ten thou- 
sand dollars was raised, and ex-Governor John Young 
Brown and the Honorable Robert C. Kinkead, of Louis- 
ville, and Judge James C. Sims, of Bowling Green — 
all of them among the most distinguished lawyers of 
the state — were employed as counsel. 

In less than ten days after my arrest — if not before 
that time — the political lines were as tightly drawn 
in regard to my guilt or innocence as they had ever 
been concerning the money question, or any other 
question, that has ever divided the two great political 
parties in the state. There was not a single Goebel 
Democratic newspaper published within the confines 
of the Commonwealth at that time that failed to take 
the position that I was guilty of the crime charged 
against me; vice versa with the Republican and in- 
dependent Democratic papers. To be a good Demo- 
crat, it was necessary to preach my guilt, to be a 
good Republican, proclaim my innocence. The times 
were out of joint. I had been in Louisville but a few 
days when Captain Davis and I were transferred to 
the jail in Frankfort and a heavy guard of Beckham 
soldiers was thrown around it. 

Frankfort at that time boasted two armed camps — 
the Taylor soldiers, who continued to occupy the State 
House Square, and the Beckham guards, who used the 
court-house as a fortress. To strengthen their force 



154 MY OWN STORY 

the Democrats swore in from one hundred to three 
hundred extra guards, who carried small firearms, 
their own rifles or muskets, the ammunition being de- 
posited at the police station and at other safe and con- 
venient places. 

The rumors afloat in the Republican camp were to 
the effect that Captain Davis and myself were likely to 
be mobbed and that the Goebel adherents would arrest 
more of the state officials, and then take forcible pos- 
session of the offices. The rumor in the Democratic 
camp was to the effect that the Taylor soldiers were go- 
ing to release Captain Davis and myself, and, in turn, 
arrest Mr. Beckham and other Democratic contestants 
on the charge of treason. The rumor that reached the 
general public was to the effect that there was going to 
be war at Frankfort between the opposing factions. 
Thus the weary, strife-laden days wore heavily on. 



CHAPTER XXIV 

MY PRELIMINARY HEARING 

Before Judge Moore — The late T. C. Campbell's record — 
Wharton Golden's testimony — Dramatic scene, pregnant 
with dire possibilities, that finally passes away without 
bloodshed — Moments of great peril to myself — I am 
denied bail and go back to jail 

Under the provisions of Section 50 of the Criminal 
Code of Kentucky, any one charged with a public 
offense is entitled to a speedy trial. I wanted one. 
Therefore I bent every energy to hasten the date of my 
preliminary hearing. This examining trial finally was 
set for March twenty-third, 1900, and was spread on 
the dockets to be heard before Judge Dan Moore, of 
the Franklin County court. 

When the hour arrived, the court-room was filled to 
overflowing. Friends and foes alike crowded into the 
seats, packed themselves into the aisles and even sought 
precarious seats on narrow window-ledges. All classes 
of men were represented, and not a few of the most 
notorious characters of that and other communities 
were to be seen in the crowd. Men came armed to the 
teeth, prepared to assist, if necessary, in the adminis- 
tration of " justice." Here and there, as I surveyed 
the motley assembly, I met the lowering glances of 
those who were thirsting for my blood. Without any 
thought of my feelings, they craned their necks to 

155 



156 MY OWN STORY 

obtain a better sight of the " prisoner at the dock," 
and, . with impudent and malignant gHtter in their 
eyes, sought to force me to turn aside my gaze. 

Into the narrow confines of the room, the mihtary 
likewise had been crowded. The Beckham guards, 
some with gun in hand, others with sash and saber, 
were stationed at every entrance and exit. Whether 
these sentries were thus posted to protect me from mob 
violence, or to help maintain his Honor's dignity, or 
to prevent my escape should I make a break for liber- 
ty, I have never known. Their presence was suf- 
ficiently significant. 

On the bench sat Judge Moore. On the right of 
the judge's bench, within the rail, sat a host of poli- 
ticians, lawyers, prosecutors, and others to a greater 
or less extent interested in the prosecution. Among 
these were Arthur Goebel, brother of Senator Goebel, 
and the late Thomas C. Campbell. 

It was the first time I had ever seen either. I 
had heard of both, particularly of Mr. Campbell; 
for, from the time that he was called to assume 
charge of the prosecution of the Goebel cases, the 
Republican and independent press of the state had 
permitted no opportunity to escape whereby his record 
could be made known. The public was frequently re- 
minded of the Cincinnati riots of 1884. In connection 
with these, Mr. Campbell was openly charged with 
being directly responsible for the loss of sixty-three 
lives. It was said, also, that his practice in Cincinnati 
courts had become so notoriously corrupt that criminals 
of every class flocked to his office for assistance, shelter 
and safety, and that his influence and practice were 
such that none of these was difficult to obtain. Finally, 



MY PRELIMINARY HEARING 157 

however, decent people rebelled when Mr. Campbell, 
apparently throwing all caution to the winds, succeeded 
in obtaining only a nominal punishment for a man who 
was plainly guilty of an atrocious crime. Outraged 
citizens determined to take the law into their own 
hands and lynch the prisoner. The police and the 
militia were called out to protect him from the threat- 
ened violence, and the clash between the armed guard- 
ians of the law and the indignant people precipitated a 
series of riots that continued for three days. During 
this bloody period the court-house was destroyed and 
all its records consumed in the flames that reduced it to 
ruins. Mr. Campbell, knowing well the danger that 
the situation held for him, stood *' not on the order of 
his going," but went forthwith, fleeing for safety to 
New York. Here he once more took up the practice 
of his " profession." 

Now, in this Kentucky court-room, my eyes fell for 
the first time on this attorney of such unsavory repu- 
tation. I beheld a man who was probably five feet 
eight inches in height and who would weigh in the 
neighborhood of two hundred pounds. His hair, 
partly gray, bordered a well-nigh bald head, and the 
height of the forehead was accentuated by the extreme 
length of the shaggy locks. His beard was almost 
black. His eyes were small and of peculiar shape; 
he possessed a strange and irregularly-shaped mouth. 

Immediately on the convening of court, ex-Governor 
Brown moved to quash the Indictment against me on 
the ground that it did not allege that the crime was 
committed in Franklin County. Judge Moore prompt- 
ly overruled the motion. The defense then requested 
that, in order to prevent any possible collusion, the wit- 



158 MY OWN STORY 

nesses be instructed to withdraw from the court-room 
and warned to hold no conversation among themselves 
relative to the case. The court responded to this re- 
quest by sending the witnesses from the room with 
this injunction : " Don't let nobody talk to you about 
this case, and don't talk to yourselves." 

After a day or two spent in hearing evidence, it 
became bruited about that the prosecution would put 
on the stand one more witness, and, with this testi- 
mony, close its case. This witness proved to be F. 
Wharton Golden, who, on the third of March, had been 
sent for by detective Tom Cromwell, and requested to 
come to the Capital Hotel in Frankfort. Here Golden 
was informed that the prosecution had woven about 
him a mesh of the most damaging proof of his own 
implication in the murder of Mr. Goebel. Mr. Camp- 
bell, who was conveniently present on that occasion, 
was quick to promise him, however, that, providing he 
would confess, he would do all within his power to 
prevent his being prosecuted. 

From that day to this Golden has stuck to the prose- 
cution like a postage-stamp to a letter. He felt that 
danger lurked for him just round the corner, and that it 
would have sprung upon him had he been but a few 
degrees higher in the counsels of the Republican party 
of Kentucky. In the fear that even his somewhat in- 
ferior position might not prove sufficient armor to pro- 
tect him, he sought to insure his own safety by casting 
his lot with that of the prosecution. It was this Golden 
who took the witness-stand against me in my examin- 
ing trial. With pale face and gaze turned unalterably 
from the side of the defense, he essayed to deliver his 
testimony with an air of indifference that accorded 



MY PRELIMINARY HEARING 159 

but poorly with his very patent agitation. Golden's 
testimony in this trial, embellished by all that the crafty 
minds of the prosecution could devise as the days wore 
away, as well as .the testimony of other witnesses, will 
be referred to and discussed in succeeding pages. 

During the whole of this preliminary hearing, and 
especially while Golden was testifying, Mr. Campbell 
made frequent plays to the gallery. He put his ques- 
tions in a way that frequently elicited laughter and 
applause from portions of the audience. He made 
frequent references to the " mountain crowd " that 
came to Frankfort on the twenty-fifth of January, as- 
serting that it was composed of ignorant desperadoes 
who were bent on murder and destruction. Though 
the counsel for the accused objected to such illegal 
procedure, the objections were of no avail. Mr. Camp- 
bell did not desist. Finally, Judge George Denny, one 
of my attorneys, arose to address the court. He said, 
in the course of his remarks : " Many citizens come 
to Frankfort; many of our mountain citizens come to 
Frankfort. I come here myself. It is not unlawful 
for men to come to Frankfort, nor is it unlawful for 
them to come here armed." 

In his reply to this argument, Mr. Campbell charged 
that Judge Denny had said he had come to Frank- 
fort armed. Mr. Denny hastily interrupted with the 
remark : " I did not say I came armed." Mr. Camp- 
bell reasserted his former statement. 

" You did say you came armed !" he thundered. 

" I did not," Mr. Denny protested. 

" I say you did !" shouted Campbell. 

Mr. Denny arose from his chair, his tall form tower- 
ing over those around him like that of a giant. All 



i6o MY OWN STORY 

eyes were turned upon the two men. Judge Denny's 
eyes flashed fire. Mr. Campbell was already on his 
feet and, as the attorney for the defense arose, ad- 
vanced a few steps toward him. The latter could make 
no movement in the direction of Campbell, for the table 
between the two men barred his progress. I was in 
front of this table and directly between the two men. 
Their bellicose attitude first caused a hush to fall 
over the crowded court-room, then, in an instant, all 
was confusion. On every side, men sprang to their 
feet. Many made frantic efforts to reach the exits — 
windows or doors — and escape from the scene. Oth- 
ers seemed bent to force the issue to a crisis. From 
various portions of the room one could hear distinctly 
the click of rifle and revolver hammers as they were 
drawn back ready to be snapped by a hair's pressure 
on the triggers. The flash of steel glinted on every 
hand. I sprang to my feet and, as I arose, I saw at 
least ten revolvers leveled at my head. Then, realiz- 
ing that I made a better target standing than sitting, 
I sank back in my chair. 

Later I was reliably informed that four men held 
revolvers leveled at my back. Had a shot been fired 
at that moment, I am confident that no less than a 
score of bullets would have pierced my body. 

When the difficulty arose, some of the guards, from 
their stations near the exits, rushed forward, guns in 
hand. The deputy sheriffs who had been sworn in only 
a short time, drew their weapons and plunged into 
the crowd. Their action only increased the confusion, 
for the latter, in their citizens' clothes, had nothing to 
distinguish them from the others. In truth, no one 
could tell — I am sure I, at least, could not tell — 



MY PRELIMINARY HEARING i6i 

whether those with revolvers in their hands at this 
moment were bent upon bloodshed or determined to 
prevent it. Mr. Zack Thomason, a tall, athletic police- 
man, walked up and down in front of me, cudgel in 
hand, commanding peace and order. The cooler 
and more conservative in the crowd rallied to his as- 
sistance and the confusion gradually abated, giving 
way to calls for order. " Sit down ! Be quiet ! " many 
shouted. But even these exhortations did not prevent 
a continuance of the wild scramble to gain the exits ; 
for men made a frantic rush toward the doors, falling 
over one another in their desperate efforts to escape 
the general fusillade of shots that they fully expected 
would follow. 

Pandemonium reigned in the court-room and, it is 
safe to say, this scene has never before or since had 
its parallel in any judicial tribunal in Kentucky. The 
excitement was at white heat and continued practically 
unabated for fully five or ten minutes. During every 
second of this time, I expected to be shot. For once 
in my life, at least, I looked instant death squarely in 
the face. The experience did not prove a pleasant one, 
nor one that I should care to repeat. But, when such 
a moment comes, it seems that it brings with it suf- 
ficient courage to enable one to endure it. 

I shall always credit Policeman Thomason with 
quelling the riot and saving my life. Order was 
finally restored, but not without difficulty. The Courier- 
Journal, in its account of the incident, at least did me 
the honor to state that I was no physical coward. It 
said : " Powers leaped to his feet quickly, but in a 
moment his face calmed, and he recovered the cool 
manner which characterizes him under almost any cir- 



i62 MY OWN STORY 

cumstances." After the excitement had partly died 
away, ex-Governor Brown, who, next to myself, was 
probably the most hated man in the court-room and 
whose life was also in momentary danger, succeeded in 
convincing Mr. Campbell, with the assistance of the 
stenographer, that he had misunderstood Judge Den- 
ny's remark. This was the end of the matter, and 
consideration of the case was resumed. 

Throughout the whole state of Kentucky, feeling 
was so intense and bitter that both ex-Governor Brown 
and Judge Sims, who was an anti-Goebel Democrat, 
took their own lives in their hands in defending me. 
But they did not consider that when moving in the per- 
formance of their duty. 

Ex-Governor Brown urged then and there that 
an immediate adjournment of the court be taken in 
order to protect my life from the enraged and passion- 
tossed mob. 

Mr. James H. Polsgrove, one of the attorneys for 
the prosecution, protested, however, and asserted that 
to adjourn at that time would be a confession to the 
world that a court of Kentucky was " unable and 
unwilling to protect the prisoner." Judge Moore 
immediately ruled, in his characteristic fashion, against 
adjournment. Turning to the spectators he said, in 
a commanding tone : 

'' You all sit down and behave yourselves. If this 
occurs again, I will put every one of you out of 
the house, and then you will be cussin' old Dan 
Moore." It was In this fashion that the Court very 
frequently alluded to himself. 

Shortly following this display of Kentucky justice, 
the Commonwealth closed its case. The Court prompt- 



MY PRELIMINARY HEARING 163 

ly overruled a motion for dismissal and with similar 
celerity overruled a motion to admit me to bail. I was, 
consequently, remanded to jail. A battalion of soldiers 
under Major Embry Allen, of Lexington, was thrown 
around the bastile. 

On the same day, Wharton Golden's wife denounced 
her husband in the severest terms. In a letter to Will 
Hawn, her nephew, she said: " He (meaning Golden) 
has been drunk or bribed. ... I would not be- 
lieve him on oath I am sorry, — not for 

Wharton ; 'tis those innocent men he has lied on." 



\ 



CHAPTER XXV 

THE prosecution's PLANS 

Arrest of Combs, Noakes, Youtsey and others — How Lawyer 
Campbell and Arthur Goebel secure a " confession " from 
Youtsey — Decision against Taylor and Marshall — 
Report of the grand jury, indicting myself and many 
others — Federal supreme court decides against the Repub- 
licans — Governor Taylor's flight to Indiana — Denuncia- 
tory Democratic platform 

The action of the court in my case only served, it 
seemed, to whet the edge of the public's appetite for 
a similar arraignment and disposition of other alleged 
conspirators. Mr. Hazelipp, steward at the Lakeland 
Asylum, had been arrested and charged with being an 
accessory to Goebel's murder. Threats were now 
heard to arrest Governor Taylor. As the days passed, 
they became louder and more persistent. At the same 
time, Richard Combs, alias " Tallow Dick," and an- 
other negro, Mason Hockersmith, were accused 
through the columns of the public press. In a few 
days, a warrant was issued for the arrest of Combs, 
who surrendered and was brought to Frankfort and 
lodged in jail. Here, for the iirst time, I met Dick 
Combs. Nevertheless we stood formally charged with 
the commission of the same crime, he as principal, I as 
accessory. 

This arrest had no sooner been made, than it began 

164 



THE PROSECUTION^S PLANS 165 

to be rumored that Robert Noakes, who lived at Cor- 
bin, Kentucky, would also be placed under arrest and 
formally charged with complicity in the Goebel mur- 
der. This report was immediately followed by the 
arrest of Henry E. Youtsey, stenographer in the audi- 
tor's office. He was taken into custody in South 
Frankfort and forthwith was charged with being a 
principal in the crime. 

Youtsey had been employed as a stenographer by 
Auditor S. H. Stone during the Bradley administra- 
tion and had been retained in the office under the 
administration of Auditor Sweeney of the Taylor 
regime. He was no sooner locked behind bars than 
he was visited by Arthur Goebel and Mr. Campbell; 
in truth, they were closeted with him before even his 
own attorneys, L. J. Crawford and R. W. Nelson, 
both of Newport, Kentucky, could reach his side. 
Mr. Campbell wrote out a confession for Youtsey, im- 
plicating in Goebel's murder. Governor Taylor, James 
B. Howard, of Clay County; Berry Howard, of 
Bell County; " Tallow Dick " Combs, Frank M. Cecil, 
of Bell County, and my brother. This they induced 
Youtsey to sign. For some reason, he could not be 
induced to include my name in the list of those he 
thus directly accused of Goebel's assassination. Ac- 
cording to this " confession," it was Dick Combs, 
Frank Cecil, Berry Howard, or Jim Howard who had 
fired the fatal shot. He asserted, further, that the 
shot had been fired from the office of the secretary of 
state — my office — but said he knew nothing against 
me. 

When Youtsey's attorneys finally reached him, he 
closed up like a clam and could not be induced to make 



i66 MY OWN STORY 

a statement of any kind. At the same time, and before 
he knew of Youtsey's confession to Campbell, James 
Andrew Scott, a prominent Goebelite lawyer, who had 
been a candidate for attorney-general before the 
famous Music Hall convention, repaired immediately 
to Winchester, Kentucky, and there sought out Judge 
C. S. French and Mr. N. H. Witherspoon. These 
were, respectively, the father-in-law and the brother- 
in-law of Youtsey. To these gentlemen, Mr. Scott 
urged the necessity and wisdom of Youtsey's turning 
state's evidence. It is said that he even went so far 
as to urge Judge French and Mr. Witherspoon to " get 
a part of the one-hundred-thousand-dollar reward, hang 
Taylor and damn the Republican party." 

Both Judge French and Mr. Witherspoon are men 
of untarnished integrity and high social standing. 
Moreover, they were pronounced Goebel Democrats. 
But this fact did not deter them from making public 
Mr. Scott's advice. The statement which they issued 
created a profound sensation, and, it is needless to add, 
caused the greatest consternation in the Goebel ranks. 
Many who, up to this time, were convinced that an 
honest effort was being made to bring Goebel's slayer 
to justice, now began for the first time to question the 
sincerity of the prosecution's purpose. Many, indeed, 
were by this thoroughly awakened to the fact that the 
motive behind the prosecution was to " hang Taylor 
and damn the Republican party," as Mr. Scott had 
stated it, rather than to bring the guilty to justice. 

While these events were going on in the criminal 
courts of Kentucky, the civil cases growing out of the 
dual government that had been established in the state 
remained practically unchanged. It was evident, how- 



THE PROSECUTION'S PLANS 167 

ever, that a decision in the matter would soon be forth- 
coming. In fact, but a short time elapsed before the 
Democratic majority of the appellate court of the 
state handed down a decision in the Taylor-Marshall 
litigation. This opinion held that the action and the 
decision of the Legislature were not subject to review 
in the state's courts. In this, two of the Republican 
judges concurred and, as a last resort, Taylor and 
Marshall obtained a writ of error to the supreme court 
of the United States. Pending the decision by this 
tribunal, the Republicans, of course, continued to hold 
possession of the offices. 

In the meantime, events were progressing rapidly 
in the other line of court procedure. The Franklin 
circuit court, that haven of Goebelism, began one of its 
sessions on April second, with Judge James E. Cantrill 
presiding. Toward this the eyes of the whole state 
were at once turned. Here the investigation by the 
grand jury would begin, and here, also, the grand 
jury would deliver its report, formally finding indict- 
ments against those charged with the murder of Mr. 
Goebel or dismissing them from custody. 

The political complexion of this grand jury was, as 
a matter of course, of much concern ; for it was clearly 
obvious that the political sentiments of its members 
would in no little measure influence their deliberations. 
It was not surprising, therefore, to discover that, when 
it was finally selected, ten of its twelve members were 
Goebel Democrats. The two Republicans who had 
been permitted place in the body composed an inef- 
fective minority, as the concurrence of nine jurors is 
sufficient for the return of an indictment. 

A few days after it was impaneled, the grand jury 



i68 MY OWN STORY 

filed slowly into the court-room and handed the clerk 
of the court a number of indictments. For days this 
action had been patiently awaited by residents in every 
section, every nook and corner of the state of Ken- 
tucky. It was thought that now the public would be 
informed of the names of those against whom indict- 
ments had been found. Despite the fact that the find- 
ing of the grand jury is a matter of public record, 
the public, in this instance, was to know no more after 
the filing of the report than it knew before. Judge 
Cantrill immediately took possession of the bunch of 
indictments, deposited them in his coat pocket and, 
leaning comfortably back in his chair, smiled broadly. 
These indictments remained secret until April 
seventeenth, when their contents were made public. 
Then the fact was disclosed that five men had been 
charged, formally and officially by the grand jury, with 
the murder of Goebel. Indictments were found against 
these men as principals. They were : Holland Whit- 
taker, of Butler County ; Berry Howard, of Bell Coun- 
ty; Henry E. Youtsey, of Campbell County; James 
B. Howard, of Clay County, and " Tallow Dick " 
Combs, of Lee County. The following were indicted 
as accessories before the fact : W. H. Culton, of Lee 
County, ex-clerk in the auditor's office; F. Wharton 
Golden, of Knox County, a teamster; my brother, 
John L. Powers, and myself, both of Barboursville, 
Knox County. The grand jury further reported that, 
in its opinion, W. S. Taylor, of Butler County; Cap- 
tain John Davis, policeman of Capitol Square; Green 
Golden, of Knox County, cousin of Wharton Golden, 
and others unknown and unnamed, were accessories. 
It reported, also, that there were other principals, in 




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THE PROSECUTION'S PLANS 169 

its opinion, whose identity was unknown. Against 
those named as accessories in this indefinite manner, 
no indictments were returned at this time, but, before 
the final adjournment, true bills were brought against 
Taylor and the others, formally charging them with 
being accessories as I was charged. 

Mr. Hazelipp was not indicted, and both he and a 
Mr. Sutton, then sheriff of Whitley County, Kentucky, 
who had been arrested also on a charge of complicity 
in the murder, were immediately released from cus- 
tody. The action of the grand jury in returning a true 
bill against Governor Taylor was not made public ; no 
one knew that such action had been taken, save those 
who had attached their names to the finding and the 
court officials, whose position made it incumbent upon 
them to know. Taylor, therefore, continued to dis- 
charge his duties as chief executive, unconscious of the 
official and formal charge that hung over him. No at- 
tempt was made to arrest him and he had no know- 
ledge then that anything more serious awaited him than 
the decision of the United States supreme court, which 
was expected shortly. 

Those under indictment who had not been arrested, 
besides Taylor, were Charles Finley, who was in In- 
diana ; John L. Powers, who was at his home in Knox 
County; Berry Howard, who was at his home in Bell 
County ; Wharton Golden, who was under the surveil- 
lance and protecting care of Mr. Campbell ; and James 
Howard, who was at his home in Clay County. 

I was, it seemed, the only one in custody at this time 
upon whom the prosecution intended to pour the vials 
of wrath. I was, therefore, determined, if possible, to 
have my trial held in a county as remote from the 



I70 MY OWN STORY 

angry passions of Franklin County, the unfriendly 
Franklin circuit court and its partizan judge, as was 
within my power. My attorneys, consequently, sought 
for and obtained a change of venue, but they did not 
succeed in having my case transferred to another 
judicial circuit. My case was taken to Scott County, 
but Judge Cantrill presided on the bench here as in 
Franklin County, and the prosecutor, Mr. Franklin, 
was the same. Apparently neither of these two pro- 
posed to relinquish the opportunity that my case 
seemed to present to further their political ambitions by 
placing themselves in the lime-light before the state 
Democracy. In truth, I gained but little; for Scott 
County is the home of Judge Cantrill, and also of his 
son, J. Campbell Cantrill, an active Goebel partizan and 
politician. It was apparent that the atmosphere of the 
court in this county would 45e as fully charged with 
Cantrillism as that of Franklin County. The die was 
cast, however, and my case was set for trial on the 
ninth of July. The cases of Holland Whittaker, 
Henry E. Youtsey, Captain John Davis and Dick 
Combs were also taken on change of venue to this same 
county, and we were all, therefore, transferred without 
further delay to the jail at Georgetown, the county seat. 
W. H. Culton had been granted immunity by the prose- 
cution in exchange for his testimony and he was not 
deprived of his liberty. 

On April thirtieth, 1900, the Taylor-Beckham case 
was argued before the United States supreme court, 
and, nearly a month later, on May twenty-first. Chief 
Justice Melville Fuller read the majority opinion of 
the tribunal. It found that the court had no jurisdic- 
tion in the litigation. Those to whom this decision 



THE PROSECUTION'S PLANS 171 

gave victory v^ere wild with delight. Those who felt 
the sting of defeat in its finding were discouraged 
beyond all measure. They had fought a good fight 
for civil liberty in Kentucky, had witnessed the sacred 
rights of the people trampled into dust, had beheld the 
^ courts of justice of the state reduced to subservience 
to a powerful political party, had sought in vain for 
some blessed spot on Kentucky's soil where the wrongs 
of the people might be righted, and, in despair, had at 
last centered all their hopes on the supreme court of 
the United States. The decision brought them addi- 
tional despair. 

Governor Taylor, on the day the opinion was handed 
down, was in Louisville, under the surveillance of a 
detective who held a warrant for his arrest, although 
even up to this time the indictment against him was 
a profound secret. If the United States court's de- 
cision had been favorable to his cause, it is prob- 
able that the warrant would never have been ordered 
served, but the moment that it was learned the opinion 
favored Beckham, Goebel's heir, the detective was 
instructed to serve it without delay. 

Taylor, when the news of the court's decision 
reached him, immediately telegraphed Adjutant-Gen- 
eral D. R. Collier at Frankfort to dismiss the militia, 
which had been for so many weary months on guard at 
the State House, and turn everything over to Mr. 
Beckham. This done, Taylor stepped into a carriage, 
was driven at once over the river into Jeffersonville, 
Indiana, successfully eluding the watchful eyes of the 
sleuths who had been tracking him. From that mo- 
ment he bcame an exile from his native state — a lot 
that has been the portion of many who have tried to 



l^2. MY OWN STORY 

live for society, truth and justice when mad riot raged 
unchecked. 

During much of this time, because of the unsettled 
condition of affairs, the auditor of state had refused to 
pay out any of the public moneys. I had, however, 
paid all my own expenses, the salaries of the two clerks 
I employed in my office and my assistant. I felt that 
it was due the people, who had given me the office, 
to maintain it as best I could until the confusion was 
ended. Now, however, I felt that the crisis in my 
own affairs had come. I was in jail, my office was 
virtually gone, my expenses were heavy, and the end 
of my purse was not far distant. Taylor and Finley 
were secure from arrest in Indiana, where Governor 
Mount had refused to honor a requisition for the re- 
turn of Finley to Kentucky, thus assuring likewise the 
safety of Taylor; and, in short, I alone was left be- 
hind to carry the weight of their alleged sins and bear 
the brunt of an unequal battle. The enemies of Taylor 
and Finley at once denounced them as " guilty fugitives 
from justice." 

The flood-gates of hatred, malice and revenge were 
thrown open by the Democratic press. Every effort 
was made that shrewd minds could devise to influence 
public sentiment against me. Every incident, no 
matter how trivial, that could in the least be inter- 
preted as incriminating, was magnified, commented on 
and added to, while anything that pointed to my inno- 
cence, no matter with what force or conviction, was 
carefully suppressed. Not only did the Democrats 
control the most influential newspapers of the state, 
but they controlled, also, the courts. They looked 
upon my conviction as a political necessity and con- 



THE PROSECUTION'S PLANS 173 

sequently entered the fight against me to win at all 
hazards, staking their fortunes and their all upon the 
outcome. 

To make it even more certain that my conviction 
would be secured, the Democrats, in nominating Mr. 
Beckham for governor, had the following plank in- 
serted in their platform : 

" We declare to the world that the mob and the 
assassin shall not be the arbitrator of the rights of the 
citizens of Kentucky, nor shall the penalty of an ap- 
peal to the law and the regularly constituted authori- 
ties be death at the hands of the assassin. Law and 
order must and shall prevail in Kentucky. 

'' We present to the people of Kentucky the pic- 
ture of an army of intimidation, unlawfully quartered 
in the public buildings of the state ; a state senator, in 
the discharge of his duty to the state, stricken down 
by an assassin's bullet fired from ambush in the Execu- 
tive Building, then occupied by his political adversary, 
who hoped to profit by his death ; that adversary 
filling and surrounding the building with armed 
men, instructed to defy the civil authorities and pre- 
vent search for the assassin ; the same political adver- 
sary and Republican pretender by force dissolving the 
Legislature to meet in a veritable slaughter-pen for 
the Democratic members, driving its members through 
the streets of Frankfort at the point of the bayonet, 
forcibly preventing the Legislature from meeting in 
its lawful and proper place ; keeping armed rioters and 
disorderly men under the very window where lay 
dying the assassin's victim ; aiding with the soldiery 
those lawfully accused of capital crimes to flee from 
justice. 



174 MY OWN STORY 

" We earnestly invite the support by voice and vote 
of every sincere lover of civil and personal liberty to 
join with us in this campaign against the forces gath- 
ered under the banner of the government of assassina- 
tion. The true manhood of Kentucky can not and will 
not indorse assassination in office, and we appeal to 
every Democrat and every good cttizen of Kentucky 
to unite with the Democratic party and thus express 
his detestation of foul crime." 

Under such vituperative denunciations as these, is it 
any wonder that I was hated before I was seen, con- 
demned before I was heard? What further proof is 
needed that my conviction was an absolute political 
necessity? It was, in short, cold-blooded expediency 
that drove them to my prosecution and goaded them 
on throughout its tortuous courses. 

A failure to convict me was considered to be so 
fraught with danger and disaster to the Goebel fol- 
lowers and political heirs that the highest Democratic 
authority, a state convention, was moved to issue a 
mandate to the Democratic judge who was to preside 
at the trial, to the Democratic sheriff who was to sum- 
mon the jurors, to the Democratic clerk and the 
Democratic citizens, some of whom would compose the 
jury that would hear my case, that there must be a 
finding and a verdict of guilty. This was the party's 
necessity. 

But this was not all. There were other reasons for 
conviction, other things at stake besides Democratic 
success at the polls. Those Democrats directly in- 
terested in my prosecution, as well as many Democrats 
throughout the state from the incumbents of the high- 
est offices to the most insignificant witness, as well as 



THE PROSECUTION'S PLANS 175 

a host of Democratic office-seekers, beheld avenues 
of poHtical preferment openmg before them in re- 
turn for their services in proclaiming my guilt, and 
in the eyes of some Republicans as well as Democrats, 
glittered the gold of the one-hundred-thousand-dollar 
bribe-money fund. What an inducement to offer for 
needed proof! What a lever to use in the production 
of damning evidence ! The sober-minded of all parties 
expected high tides in the streams of perjury, as well 
as that perjurers would be procured by those whose 
duty it was to prosecute them. In the face of all this, 
for what could I hope? What could I expect? 



CHAPTER XXVI 

REPUBLICANS BARRED 

My first trial before Judge Cantrill — Selection of a partizan 
jury — Disregard of the law for the purpose of insuring 
conviction — Campbell's statement in behalf of the prose- 
cution 

As the town clock struck nine on the morning of 
July ninth, 1900, I was pacing up and down the 
narrow corridors of the Georgetown jail. This was 
the day set for my trial, and I was thinking deeply of 
the ordeal through which I was soon to pass. I real- 
ized as never before that hate and misunderstanding are 
stubborn things to reckon with, but the old saying, 
that men who complain of them are yet in the kinder- 
garten class, came dancing forth from the chambers 
of my dizzy brain, and I concluded then that the safer, 
saner way would be neither to flee to my troubles nor 
drag them about with me. 

The call of the sheriiT informed me that it was time 
to appear in the court-room. In the custody of three 
deputies the trip was quickly made. As I entered, I 
was at once struck by the fact that all the women in 
the audience were seated on the prosecution's side of 
the room. Some even occupied chairs within the bar 
proper. This I could not understand, for I recog- 
nized among them some of my best friends. I was 
afterward informed that this arrangement was made 

176 



REPUBLICANS BARRED 177 

by order of the court. Evidently this was for the 
purpose of making it seem to the jury and the pubHc 
that I was utterly without sympathy; that even the 
women of the state had entered the arena to cry aloud 
for my blood. 

Judge Cantrill, with flowing side-whiskers, bald 
head and an athletic stature, sat upon the bench. I 
was the object of every one's gaze. From every corner 
of the court-room men and women adjusted their 
glasses the better to inspect me. The indelicacy — aye, 
the brutality — of it all I observed, and it seemed to 
freeze me to the marrow of my bones. 

Out of one hundred and seventy-nine witnesses sum- 
moned for the defense, only five were present. It was 
evident that, under such circumstances, stripped, as I 
was, of means to establish my innocence, I could not 
go to trial. The only thing to do, therefore, was to 
announce that I was not ready for trial. Judge Can- 
trill, however, ruled that the trial should proceed, 
and in lieu of a continuance, he tendered me the com- 
pulsory process of his court for the purpose of securing 
the attendance of my witnesses — a process to which, 
according to the Constitution of Kentucky, every man 
accused of crime is entitled. It was obvious that, if 
I failed to secure the attendance of my witnesses, the 
Court wished the public to understand that he had 
done all in his power to assist me, and that he could 
not be held accountable for their failure to appear. 

The examination of jurors soon exhausted the regu- 
lar panel of twenty-four, and the court, over the vigor- 
ous protest of the defense, ordered the sheriff of the 
county to summon one hundred bystanders, residents 
of Scott County, for jury service. 



178 MY OWN STORY 

According to the law, as the court of appeals later 
held, the jury- wheel should have been exhausted be- 
fore these bystanders were summoned. The names 
in the wheel had been placed there in October, 1899, 
four months before Senator Goebel was murdered. 
At that time some three hundred were so placed in the 
wheel. There was not, at that time, any motive for 
*' packing " any jury that might be drawn during the 
succeeding terms of court; and that the regular jury- 
wheel was not so packed is clearly shown by the fact 
that of the twenty-four regularly impaneled talesmen^ 
who were excused from service, some were Republi- 
cans and some Independent Democrats. The prose- 
cution, it is evident, very quickly decided that, if the 
remaining names in the regular jury- wheel when drawn 
would assemble such a body of men, politically consid- 
ered, as the twenty- four men just excused, it would be 
far better to have nothing whatever to do with the 
remaining names in the jury-wheel. In other words, 
out of the names remaining in the wheel a jury might 
be selected that would accord me something like a fair 
trial ; or the verdict it might render would be its own 
inability to agree, and, in such an event, I would be 
entitled to my freedom on bail, pending a second trial. 
A divided jury likewise would do much to convince 
the public of my innocence. Such a possibility, 
the prosecution had firmly determined, should be 
avoided at all hazards. 

The sheriff and his deputies — all Goebelite office- 
holders — proceeded to the rock-ribbed Democratic 
voting precinct of Stonewall to get them. Its citizens 
were more rural, more reliably Democratic than those 
of any other portion of the county. It was among 



REPUBLICANS BARRED 179 

such that rankled the fiercest hatred for those charged 
with the Goebel murder. IlHteracy, narrow-minded- 
ness and Democratic reUabihty were the quahfications 
for jury service sought for by the prosecution in my 
case. It is said that supposed fruit vendors and stock 
traders had gone through that section of the county 
from which the prospective jurymen were summoned, 
and that their feeHngs in regard to my alleged guilt 
were fully known before they were summoned. When 
the men arrived, Judge Cantrill, who was a bosom 
friend of Senator Goebel's during his life-time, deliber- 
ately left the bench and walked around where the 
special venire sat, and — before any oath had been ad- 
ministered to them — began to question the men in a 
tone inaudible to any except those in the vicinity of the 
questioned and questioner. After an investigation 
which seemed to be satisfactory to himself, he ex- 
cused those who, in his judgment, did not come up to 
the requirements of the case. Not a single lawyer for 
the defense was requested by the judge to be present 
during this strange and unprecedented proceeding, and 
none of them was present. 

Those who have ever given thought to jury trials 
know that the selection of the jury is of the utmost 
importance. If the jury is packed or bribed, evidence, 
innocence, justice — nothing affects a prearranged ver- 
dict. A bribed jury is blind to everything except the 
glitter of gold ; one packed, deaf to all alike except 
the crackle of the fires of hatred and revenge. By 
some strange oversight, the laws of Kentucky (see 
Criminal Code, Sec. 281), provide that the rulings 
and decisions of the trial court, in the selection and 
formation of the jury, are not subject to exceptions 



i8o MY OWN STORY 

and review by any higher court. Judge Cantrill knew 
that his decisions in the examination of the talesmen, 
while unprecedented, would not be reviewed by the 
court of appeals. 

Twelve Democrats sat in the jury-box to try me for 
my life. Mr. J. C. Porter, one of the jurymen, had 
been extensively advertised as a Republican. This was 
a mistake. Mr. Porter is not now, and never has been 
a Republican. His family connections, his wife's 
father, brothers, relatives, are Democrats. His Democ- 
racy and regularity in voting the straight Democratic 
ticket were never questioned until 1896, when he voted 
for McKinley. There was not, therefore, a single Re- 
publican on the jury which tried me for my life. As 
soon as representatives of the Commonwealth were ap- 
prised of the fact that Porter, upon one occasion, had 
failed to support the Democratic ticket, they came to 
the defense and urged that it should agree for Porter 
to be excused from jury service, on the ground of 
lunacy, claiming that he was not in his right mind. 
To this the defense would not agree, and the jury 
remained as accepted. This alarmed the prosecution. 
It had been represented to it that Porter was a Demo- 
crat, true and tried. It was a " fake," so something 
must be done. Something was done. Subsequent 
pages will show the corrupt influences brought to bear 
upon Porter. 

Judge Cantrill decided invalid the Taylor pardon to 
me, and Mr. Campbell stated the case for the prosecu- 
tion and declared that the Commonwealth proposed to 
prove that Mr. Goebel came to his death as a result of a 
monstrous Republican conspiracy; that I was one of 
the conspirators ; that the bringing of the mountaineers 



REPUBLICANS BARRED i8i 

to Frankfort on January twenty-fifth, 1900, was a part 
of that conspiracy; that the fatal shot was fired from 
the office of the secretary of state ; that this fact further 
connected me with the conspiracy; and, finally, that 
the militia was called out immediately after the shoot- 
ing for the purpose of protecting the conspirators from 
arrest and insuring the escape of the principals. A 
glance at these assertions will at once disclose the fact 
that they are practically identical with the charges 
made by the Goebel politicians on the day that Goebel 
received his mortal wound. 

Nothing sensational had developed during the first 
week of the trial, aside, of course, from the farce con- 
nected with the selection of the jury. During these 
six days, however, it was made clear to me what in- 
fluences were engaged in the battle against me. The 
garbled reports printed in the Democratic newspapers ; 
their efforts to prejudice the public generally against 
me; the swarm of witnesses who were hovering about 
the distributers of the reward fund ; the liberty on the 
streets of certain alleged co-conspirators, the attitude 
of the Court toward my attorneys ; his failure to recog- 
nize them on the streets; his fining them in court 
upon the slightest provocation and forcing them to 
pay the fine immediately or go to jail ; his undisguised 
contempt and hatred for me ; the eagerness with which 
the jury seemed to devour the prosecution's evidence; 
the manifest unfairness that prevailed, seemingly, ev- 
erywhere — all these and many other things almost too 
numerous to mention served to increase my despair and 
convince me more firmly than ever that I could expect 
nothing but conviction in the end. 

The conspiracy charge at that time was a mere legal 



i82 MY OWN STORY 

fiction, nor has its status improved with the passing of 
the years. Under it the rules governing the introduc- 
tion and exclusion of evidence were extremely loose 
and pliable ; they gave the prosecution almost unlimited 
advantages. Such an indictment made it possible for 
the prosecution to introduce scraps of conversations, re- 
marks overheard here and there, sentences separated 
entirely from all their surroundings, isolated and made 
pregnant with meaning never intended. Acts and dec- 
larations of unknown and unidentified persons, where 
the witness could by the most elastic use of his imagina- 
tion connect them with some phase of the alleged con- 
spiracy, were all admitted as evidence. Even the 
statements made by hot-headed fanatics during the 
campaign were permitted to go before the jury. The 
whole procedure was marked with hatred and was di- 
rected by the blindest partizan prejudice. In short, 
the court-room was converted into a medium for the 
exploitation of the violent statements and recrimina- 
tions of a political campaign that has never been sur- 
passed in point of bitterness in the history of the 
human race. 



CHAPTER XXVII 

A POLITICAL NECESSITY 

Trained witness for the Commonwealth — George F. Weaver's 
sensational statement in regard to the shooting of Senator 
Goebel — Indictment for perjury, but no prosecution — 
Finley Anderson's false testimony 

During this time, the Goebel press continued to goad 
its readers to greater indignation against me and in- 
duced, in a great measure, the hatred that has pursued 
me. It seemed fairly to exhaust itself in an effort to 
make out of my trial all the capital possible, for use 
during the approaching fall campaign. 

The Honorable John W. Yerkes, of Danville, had 
been nominated by the Republican party for the office 
of governor. He went before the people on a platform 
declaring that the courts of Kentucky, under the guid- 
ance of their Democratic dictators, were organized 
" not for trial but to convict." The platform on which 
his opponent, the Honorable J. C. W. Beckham, stood, 
has already been quoted. The guilt or innocence of 
the men charged with GoebeFs murder, therefore, 
formed the issue of the campaign. It was, in truth, 
the bone of contention. Strange issues, indeed, be- 
tween two great political parties in a contest for a gov- 
ernorship ; but stranger still that such a political issue 
should be fought out in a court of justice, where the 
life of a human being was at stake. Is it any wonder^ 

183 



i84 MY OWN STORY 

under such circumstances, that a temple of justice 
should be transformed into a forum for the exploita- 
tion of the angry passions of the fiercest and most bit- 
ter campaign and contest for state offices known to 
any American Commonwealth? It would have been 
less than human if my guilt or innocence had not 
been lost sight of in such a struggle for political ad- 
vantage. 

A statement in the Lexington Herald at this time 
throws additional light on the situation. It was inde- 
pendent Democratic in its editorial utterances and had 
this to say : " A conviction is a political necessity. The 
present leadership has staked its fortunes on this con- 
viction." 

Three entire weeks were consumed by the prosecu- 
tion in submitting its evidence. It is hardly necessary 
to add that, during this time, the Goebel press was ex- 
erting a most baneful influence on my trial. It found 
plenty of fuel with which to feed its fire of abuse and 
vituperation ; for the Commonwealth devoted much 
of this time to the examination of its five brilliant and 
dazzling star-witnesses upon whose testimony it relied 
almost entirely for a conviction. 

Three of* these, Wharton Golden, W. H. Culton, 
and Robert Noakes, stood formally accused of com- 
plicity in the murder and were offering their testi- 
mony now in exchange for immunity. It can be easily 
imagined, therefore, that their testimony was of espe- 
cial value to the Goebel newspapers. The other two, 
Finley Anderson and George F. Weaver, were offering 
their testimony not because of cold-blooded expediency, 
but for a consideration of cool dollars and cents. Of 
the " Five Invincibles," as these were banteringly 



A POLITICAL NECESSITY 185 

termed by some at the time, only one (Wharton Gold- 
en) remains in the service of his coachers and em- 
ployers. Weaver, Noakes and Anderson are now pub- 
licly-known perjurers. Noakes confessed his perjury, 
Anderson made an affidavit to his, and Weaver was in- 
dicted for his. Culton, after serving the prosecution 
faithfully for a number of years, finally forged a num- 
ber of witness claims against the state and forthwith 
fled to parts unknown to escape arrest and prosecution. 

Of all these, Mr. Campbell was the trainer. He 
coached and examined all, and demanded the credit 
therefor except in the case of Weaver, who made such 
a miserable showing that Mr. Campbell, feeling his 
professional pride assailed, disavowed all knowledge 
of this witness and declared that he had never seen 
Weaver until a few moments before he was placed on 
the witness-stand. Weaver, however, should not be 
too strongly censured for his failure, for, in truth, he 
added some needed testimony. 

When his name was called, I saw emerge from the 
waiting-room a man a little below the average in 
height, and much above the average in weight. He 
looked very much as though he were a care-free mem- 
ber of the eat-drink-and-be-merry class of human be- 
ings. 

Upon his appearance, the attorneys for the prosecu- 
tion stirred excitedly in their seats, and exchanged 
significant glances. Their attitude indicated that a 
genuine sensation was about to be sprung. The ex- 
pectancy communicated itself to the spectators and 
they craned their necks to see him. The witness, in 
the midst of this, took his seat on the witness-stand 
and immediately plunged into his story. He said that 



i86 MY OWN STORY 

his home was in Denver, Colorado, and that he was in 
Frankfort, Kentucky, on January thirtieth, 1900, leav- 
ing there for Louisville at noon that same day. 

Question. — Where were you when Goebel was shot ? 

Answer. — I was walking down the street by what I 
suppose is the Capitol building. 

He then proceeded to declare that he had never 
been in Frankfort before and was not acquainted 
with the city or its streets. He knew, however, that 
he was on the inside of Capitol Square, and in front 
of the Executive Building. He stated emphatically 
that he remembered with distinctness his exact position 
when the shot was fired. He declared that he was at a 
point on the west side of the pavement, opposite a 
hackberry tree, walking in the direction of the gate; 
that he turned round quickly on hearing the shot, 
looked toward the building, and saw " what he took to 
be a man's hand, something like in that position (indi- 
cating) on a gun-barrel, taking it back into the win- 
dow." He said that what he witnessed occurred in one 
of the windows of the office of the secretary of state, 
and that, to the best of his recollection, it was the win- 
dow in the southwest corner of the office. He said that 
he saw some persons and the man who had been 
wounded by the shot near the fountain, and that, paus- 
ing but a moment, he quickly passed out of the gate 
and went his way. 

From the viewpoint of the prosecution, the testi- 
mony of this witness was the most crushing and dam- 
aging of any that had been offered. He had estab- 
lished the claim of the Commonwealth that the shot 
which killed Goebel had been fired from the window 
of the office of the Republican secretary of state. 





I Holland Whittaker Robert Noakes 

Henry E. Youtsey Captain John Davis 

Berry Howard James B. Howard 

'JOME OF THE OTHERS INDICTED FOR THE MURDER OF WILLIAM GOEBEL 



A POLITICAL NECESSITY 187 

This, in the judgment of the prosecution, was sufficient 
in itself to ruin the Repubhcan party, and rivet my con- 
viction. 

So far as I was myself concerned, I was confident 
that Weaver had sworn falsely. Noakes, Anderson, 
Culton and others made statements equally infamous 
and equally untrue, and placed it beyond my power to 
contradict them by testimony other than my own, be- 
cause they said I had made damaging statements to 
them when alone. I could not even contradict 
Weaver's testimony by my own. 

However, events proved that Weaver's perjury 
would, after all, be fairly easy to expose. In less 
than twenty-four hours we were able to establish by a 
dozen or more reputable witnesses that Weaver was 
not in Frankfort at all on the day that Goebel was shot, 
but v/as in Grayson Springs, one hundred and fifty 
miles away. Weaver was later arrested at the instance 
of the defense, and an indictment was found against 
him charging him with perjury. He was, however, re- 
leased on the insignificant and obviously inadequate 
bond of two hundred dollars, and Weaver to-day is 
still at large, undisturbed and unmolested by those 
whose duty it is to prosecute him. 

When Finley Anderson took the witness-stand, Mr. 
Campbell held in his hand a rather voluminous written 
document. He began the examination of the witness, 
holding him like a charmed bird under the spell of 
a serpent. When young Anderson, by any mischance, 
failed to remember all he was expected to testify 
to, the wily examiner would " refresh " his memory 
by reading to him from the document to which I have 
already referred. With this assistance, the witness 



i88 MY OWN STORY 

would then proceed to answer the question in the man- 
ner desired. His air was one of certainty and of 
frankness. His testimony, as might be expected, was 
extremely sensational and, among many other asser- 
tions he made was one to the effect that I was at his 
father's hotel in Barboursville, Kentucky, a few days 
before Mr. Goebel was murdered and there made the 
declaration that " If we can't get him (meaning Goe- 
bel) killed, and it is necessary, I will do it myself!" 
Proof! The procurer of confessions proved anything 
he desired. Why should he not, when he had himself 
prepared the statements to which the witness swore? 
But later, Anderson, under oath, explained how he 
was bribed, retracted his testimony and exposed the 
corrupt methods by which it was procured. (See Ap- 
pendix A.) The smooth suborner of perjury had so 
framed the story of Anderson, as well as that of 
Noakes and other perjurers, as to put it beyond my 
power to contradict them by any other witness than 
myself. Noakes, Golden, Culton, Anderson and the 
rest, testified that their conversations with me had been 
in private. Realizing how powerless I was to con- 
vince the public that these star-witnesses were black 
perjurers, it is beyond the power of words to express 
how gratified I was to know the conscience of one had 
haunted him until he was forced to tell the truth. 



CHAPTER XXVIII 

THE VALUE OF AN OATH 

Robert Noakes in the role of a star-witness — Later confesses 
himself to be a perjurer — W. H. Culton exonerates me 
after giving sensational testimony — F. Wharton Golden's 
evidence — Prosecution calls the Goebel press to its rescue 

During all the time that had elapsed since my ex- 
amining trial, which was held in March, the whole 
county, as well as the entire state of Kentucky, had 
been kept in a constant state of excitement and expect- 
ancy. Sensational stories in inflammatory journals ap- 
peared with persistent regularity, in which it was again 
and again asserted that many prominent Republicans 
would, sooner or later, be connected with the killing of 
Senator Goebel. Men high in the councils of the 
party were thus exhibited repeatedly as possible 
assassins. Others, who had gained no such 
prominence, were frequently referred to as possessing 
guilty knowledge, and among these was Robert Noakes. 
He was the captain of a military company at Corbin, 
Kentucky, had been a railroad employee, was a heeler 
for the Republican party in his own town, and, withal, 
had led a somewhat reckless life. He had come to 
Frankfort with the mountain men, and, apparently, had 
been exceedingly anxious for Republican success. He 
had talked boldly and had protested vigorously against 
the attitude of the Democrats in the contests. 

189 



190 MY OWN STORY 

He is a man far above the average in native abil- 
ity and intelligence, but without education. He w^as 
looked upon as a man who could be easily instructed 
and then left to his own ability to carry out his instruc- 
tions with good results. Naturally such a man played 
easily into the hands of the prosecution. Almost im- 
mediately he became the center of attraction, nor did he 
permit himself in the few days during which he held 
the stage to lose any of the notoriety he apparently 
loved to possess. 

When he took the witness-stand, he gazed about 
him with unblushing effrontery, glanced calmly over 
toward the lawyers for the defense, rested his eyes 
a moment on me, and bowed slightly. Then he 
settled himself more comfortably in his chair and 
turned his attention toward Mr. Campbell. 

Throughout the examination that followed, he 
seemed to delight in treading on the very frontier of dis- 
honesty, infamy and folly. He was the brightest of Mr. 
Campbell's galaxy of stars and he proposed to display 
his brilliancy to the best advantage. He had not been 
" captured " until July and, though he came into the 
race of the liars slightly handicapped by this time- 
difference, he nevertheless made up for it in boldness 
and effrontery. In truth, Noakes outstripped them all, 
eclipsed them all, but, in all sustained them and cor- 
roborated them. 

He asserted under oath that both my brother and 
myself had endeavored to induce him to procure 
smokeless powder cartridges with which to kill Goebel 
He stated that we had approached him with this propo- 
sition prior to January twenty-fifth, 1900, and that, on 
the morning of the twenty-fifth, my brother had told 



THE VALUE OF AN OATH 191 

him that all preparations had been made for the assas- 
sination of Goebel that day. On the afternoon of this 
same day, he declared that I approached him, saying: 
" Bob, I understand that you have two men in your 
company who, if you told them you wanted a certain 
man killed, would make it possible for you to find his 
corpse the next morning." He testified further that 
I said to him at that time that the contests would " not 
amount to a damn, for, as soon as Goebel is dead and 
in hell, no other Democrat in the state of Kentucky 
could hold the Democratic party together as he has." 

It was along such lines as these that Noakes related 
his story. In the end, however, he was forced to ad- 
mit that he had left Frankfort on January twenty-fifth 
and that he had no actual knowledge of any plot, if 
such there were, which resulted in Goebel's death. My 
attorneys, nevertheless, found it difficult to make much 
of an attack on Noakes' testimony, and, as a result, the 
prosecution was jubilant. The Courier- Journal, com- 
menting on this fact, said : " Caleb Powers' disap- 
pointment over the failure of his counsel to break down 
the testimony of Noakes was plainly apparent through- 
out the proceedings to-day, and his discouragement was 
visible in every line of his face." 

But, if I may be pardoned the allusion to a trite 
expression, " truth crushed to earth will rise again " 
was exemplified here; for Noakes, this star-witness 
for the prosecution, some months later prepared a writ- 
ten statement in which he confessed himself to be a 
perjurer — the most monumental liar of the age. This 
retraction of all that he had sworn to was given to 
the public December fourteenth, 1900, and is referred 
to again in the course of this narrative. 



192 MY OWN STORY 

W. H. Culton followed Noakes to the witness-stand. 
His testimony also was of a sensational character. 
He stated that he had talked to a Doctor W. R. John- 
son, a desperate character, and that the conversa- 
tion turned on Johnson's plan to end the life of Goe- 
bel with nitroglycerin. He said further that he had 
also talked with many others regarding plans of mur- 
der, and had heard from Youtsey's own lips " his slick 
scheme " whereby Goebel's life was to be taken. He 
was forced to admit, however, that he, like Noakes, 
knew absolutely nothing of any actual plot that had 
resulted in the death of Goebel. He said, in substance, 
that when he heard the Democratic leader had been 
mortally shot there was not a man in Frankfort more 
surprised than he. He likewise exonerated me from 
all knowledge of the crime, for the following ques- 
tion was asked him and the following answer was 
given : 

Question. — I will now turn to Mr. Powers. State 
whether you had any conversation with Mr. Powers 
prior to the killing of Goebel relative to that matter ? 

Answer. — Never in my life. I never had a conver- 
sation with him in regard to the killing. (Vol. HI, P. 
447, Bill of Exceptions.) 

The cross-examination developed the fact that Cul- 
ton had once been indicted for forgery and had, it is 
alleged, embezzled one thousand dollars from the 
auditor's office when he was employed there in the 
capacity of clerk. 

Wharton Golden was another witness for the Com- 
monwealth who possessed an unsavory reputation. 
However, he is not as bad as he is weak, and his 
criminal record even showed to advantage when com- 



THE VALUE OF AN OATH 193 

pared with the records of his fellow perjurers. Whar- 
ton Golden had been indicted for carrying concealed 
weapons and for selling whisky in violation of the 
revenue law, but no graver charge had ever been lodged 
against him. He is a man of slender frame, possessing 
a face that impresses one with the weakness of his 
character, its vacillation and lack of will-power. He 
was a mere leaf floating on the dark current of events ; 
the first man against whom a semi-formal accusation 
had been made by Mr. Campbell's mouth-piece, detec- 
tive Tom Cromwell, and he was also the first man to 
" confess '^ a guilty knowledge of the alleged con- 
spiracy to kill Goebel. He was then, and still is, under 
indictment for complicity in the murder and, like Cul- 
ton and Noakes, was willing to swear away my life 
to save his own. But he, like his two associates, was 
forced to admit that he had no knowledge that Senator 
Goebel was to be killed on January thirtieth, 1900, 
much less any knowledge that the fatal bullet was to 
be fired from the office of the secretary of state. 

It is an easy matter to put into the mouths of men 
utterances that can be contradicted only by the man 
who is on trial for his life, — and of such material was 
the evidence introduced against me during the weary 
days that brought to light this mass of perjured 
testimony. But, after all, it is a difficult matter 
to pick men up and place them together like nine- 
pins in a certain position, in a certain place, and, by 
evidence, of the character of that introduced against 
me, prove that they conspired to commit murder or 
any other crime, when, as a matter of fact, there was 
not the slightest foundation on which such a lie might 
be based. The failure of the prosecution to connect 



194 MY OWN STORY 

me with the murder was clearly shown by the witness, 
when, in answer to a question, Golden replied : *' I 
was expecting nothing but a fight in the legislative 
hall ; that is the way I expected Goebel to be killed all 
the time." 

After three long and weary weeks of suspense, per- 
jury and unjust rulings, the prosecution brought its 
case to a close. Knowing that it had made but a weak 
support of its charge, it immediately called upon the 
Goebel press again to come to its rescue. The response 
was immediate, although somewhat ill-advised in the 
form it assumed. The claim was advanced that, if I 
were not guilty, I was at least in a position to know 
who was guilty, and that it was my duty to " point out 
the real criminal." Accusations were never made with 
more bitter vehemence, nor with more reckless disre- 
gard for common justice and human life than .were 
made by the newspapers which served the Democratic 
interests. In the desperation of the prosecution, it 
called upon me through its mouth-piece, to do that 
which I was powerless to do, and which it had failed 
to do — expose the guilty. It adopted the French law 
and proceeded on the theory that a man is guilty until 
he proves himself innocent. 



CHAPTER XXIX 

MY DEFENSE AND MY CONVICTION 

Judge Faulkner's statement for the defense — My testimony 
for myself — Cross-examination by Lawyer Campbell — 
Address to the jury — Verdict of guilty, with penalty of 
life imprisonment — Juryman Porter — My card to the 
public 

My defense was begun by Judge H. C. Faulkner's 
statement of the case to the jury. " It is not," the 
speaker declared, '' by the choice of the defense that 
this trial has been made a political rather than an ordi- 
nary criminal trial; but the Commonwealth has 
throughout the procedure followed this course. 

*' We will demonstrate," he continued, " that Finley 
Anderson is a liar for revenue only ; that W. H. Culton 
was put under the thumb-screw and forced to say what 
the gentlemen on the other side wanted him to say ; that 
Noakes, the greatest Har in history, entered into a 
fraudulent contract to have himself arrested as a 
" blind " and then came here to sell Caleb Powers' life- 
blood for gold and for immunity ; that Wharton Golden 
showed a roll of money in Barboursville, and said that it 
was a part of that one-hundred-thousand-dollar re- 
ward, and that in his testimony he lied wilfully and de- 
liberately ; that there has been a carefully planned con- 
spiracy of diabolical character conceived and put into 

195 



196 MY OWN STORY 

execution for the purpose of sending this man to the 
gallows by means of perjury and subornation of per- 
jury." 

After Judge Faulkner had concluded his excellent 
statement of my case, it became my turn to take the 
witness-stand in my own behalf. I knew I should have 
to give an account of my every word and act during a 
protracted and heated political campaign and during 
the struggle for supremacy that followed it. I was to 
tell not merely what I had said and done, but what oth- 
ers had said and done as well. I realized that it was a 
tremendous task. I was fully aware that it devolved on 
me to remember all the details of the testimony offered 
by the prosecution touching my conduct, speech and 
whereabouts, and be able at all times to attack this mass 
of evidence in its most vulnerable points. I knew, 
moreover, that the fire to which I would be subjected 
would be unmerciful ; and that the slightest discrepancy 
that might escape my lips would be magnified, distorted 
an4 construed into an admission of guilt. 

Nevertheless, I felt equal to the task. My inno- 
cence sustained me. That my confidence was not mis- 
placed, even the Courier- Journal admitted. It said: 
" One of the leading attorneys for the prosecution, in 
speaking to-night of Powers' testimony, said : ' The 
prisoner is a shrewd man. He is a thorough diplomat, 
and in every sentence he utters there is an appeal to 
the jury. . . . The attorneys for the defense 
and the friends of the prisoner say he has told a plain, 
straightforward story. They say he has practically 
acquitted himself of any implication in the crime ; and 
that he will bring abundant proof, in support of every 
assertion he has made.' *' 



MY DEFENSE AND MY CONVICTION 197 

Mr. Campbell conducted my cross-examination, and 
I will quote an independent Democratic paper, the 
Evening Post, of Louisville, to show how the public 
regarded Mr. Campbell's unprofessional conduct while 
he submitted me to the fire of his questions : 

'* The expectation of a further exhibition of Camp- 
bell's tactics helped to swell to-day's crowd. People 
here have learned that in the art of injecting argument 
into examination, of veiling innuendoes, of inference 
and insinuation under the guise of questions, and of 
putting his own words into other men's mouths, Camp- 
bell is a grand master. But not one inch did he shake 
Caleb Powers in the long and severe cross-examination 
which went on during the forenoon. He never once 
lost his head, nor did he allow Campbell to trap him 
into admissions that he did not make. So amply able 
to take care of himself did the prisoner prove, that 
ex-Governor Brown found few occasions to object to 
Campbell's interrogations, although most of them were 
couched in objectionable language. Throughout the 
morning, Powers remained cool and calm, and his re- 
plies seemed to breathe sincerity and truth. At times, 
the inquiry was turned by Campbell into a trial of wit, 
in which he pitted his shrewdness against that of Pow- 
ers. In every such instance, Campbell suffered. Pow- 
ers made no flippant rejoinders ; he attempted no eva- 
sion. He met each question fairly and squarely, and 
his answers were always full and sufficient." 

After my testimony was completed, my attorneys 
introduced over one hundred witnesses in my behalf. 
Fully two weeks were required to hear this testimony. 
I shall not give it here. I omit it, and, thus far have 
made it a point to mention only casually the evidence 



198 MY OWN STORY 

submitted by the prosecution, because, later, I made 
an argument in my own behalf, reviewing all the evi- 
dence at length, and this argument is presented in the 
accompanying appendix. I will say, however, that 
the testimony for the defense not only sufficed to prove 
my innocence, but to establish, as well, the perjury of 
many witnesses for the prosecution. 

The jury was taken to the scene of the tragedy and 
carefully escorted about the points touched upon by 
testimony In the trial. Upon its return, the court in- 
structed the jury. The instructions under which it 
was called upon to consider the evidence in the case 
in order to reach a verdict were " bloody " in the ex- 
treme. In truth, after hearing them, had the jury 
failed to find me guilty, it would almost have been in 
contempt of court. The argument for the defense was 
then begun. Judge Sims leading ofif in a persuasive and 
logical address. It was followed by Colonel J. K. 
Hendrick, who made a strong plea for the prosecution. 
The Honorable George Denny, of Lexington, Ken- 
tucky, followed in turn, delivering a sledge-hammer 
argument of great force and convincing power. Mr. 
Victor F. Bradley of Georgetown, Kentucky, next spoke 
for the prosecution, making a plausible speech. He 
was followed by Judge James H. Tinsley, of Barbours- 
ville, for the defense. Tinsley is a mountain lawyer 
and surprised everybody by his bold and vigorous log- 
ic. B. B. Golden followed for the prosecution, and 
Major W. C. Owens, for the defense, came in turn. 
Owens was not surpassed in brains or force of logic 
by any man on either side of the case. Tom C. Camp- 
bell spoke after Owens, delivering a semi-political 
speech, full of dangerous insinuations and innuendoes. 




ROBERT FRANKLIN, PROSECUTING ATTORNEY IN ALL 

THE CASES, INCLUDING THOSE OF BOTH 

HOWARD AND MYSELF 



MY DEFENSE AND MY CONVICTION 199 

Ex-Governor Brown spoke next with great vigor and 
was followed by Robert B. Franklin, a dramatic actor- 
orator, who closed the Commonwealth's argument. 
His remarks were at times warmly applauded by 
friends of the prosecution; but of this applause and 
demonstration the court took not the slightest official 
cognizance. 

The jury, at the conclusion of Mr. Franklin's argu- 
ment, arose from its benches, filed slowly into the petit 
jury-room, and the door was immediately locked be- 
hind it. A deputy sheriff stationed himself at the en- 
trance and guarded it against all comers. At last my 
case was in the hands of the twelve men who were to 
determine my fate 1 The eyes of every one in the 
court-room were turned upon me. I shall not voice 
the feelings that filled my breast at this trying moment, 
but, instead, shall permit some of the spectators to 
describe how I appeared to feel. The Courier- Journal 
said : " It was apparent from Powers' expression that 
he had no fear of conviction and was perfectly cool 
and deliberate." 

The Louisville Herald said : " Powers was as 
cool and calm as ever. Verily, the prisoner must be 
a man of iron." The stuff of which heroes are made is 
in us all. In emergencies we all prove it. It is a great 
thing to have a clear conscience, to be patient and 
serene when wrongly accused, and to have your feet 
so firmly planted on the foundation of truth that you 
can meet calumny with silence, and slander with a 
smile. 

In less than an hour after the jury retired, there 
came a rap on the door of the room where the body 
was holding its deliberations. The door was opened, 



200 MY OWN STORY 

and, even more slowly than it retired, the jury filed into 
the court-room. 

" Have you made your verdict, gentlemen ? " asked 
the court. 

Two of the jurors immediately replied, ^' We have." 

The paper upon which the finding was written was 
handed to the clerk. It read : 

" We, the jury, find the defendant guilty as 
charged and fix his punishment at imprisonment for 
life in the state penitentiary. I. G. Stone, foreman." 

What emotions filled my heart no pen can write, no 
language can describe ! By that verdict, I was brand- 
ed by my state and by my fellow men as a murderer. 
The awfulness of its meaning fell on me with crushing 
force. In a moment, however, it flashed through my 
mind that such a verdict could not stand, that it could 
not be final. 

While sorrow with its dark wing covered me 
with deepest gloom, the prosecution and its friends 
on the other side of the court-room were receiving and 
offering the most effusive congratulations. The truism 
that the joys of one are erected upon the ruins, misfor- 
tunes and sufferings of another, was exemplified 
here. As Arthur Goebel left the court-room he re- 
ceived the congratulations of the jurors who had just 
returned against me the verdict of guilty. The Cour- 
ier-Journal commented thus on the incident : " On his 
way down the steps leading from the court-room, Mr. 
Arthur Goebel was met by several of the jurors, who 
shook his hand. Among them was W. O. Tinder. 
Mr. Tinder broke down in tears when he took Mr. 
Goebel's hand, and then walked away, being too deeply 
affected to speak." Was a man, whose feelings were 



MY DEFENSE AND MY CONVICTION 201 

thus so sensitively alive to the circumstances of Mr. 
Goebel's tragic death, fit to serve upon a jury which was 
trying the alleged murderer? 

It was generally believed that improper influence 
had been brought to bear on Porter, one of the jury- 
men. Republicans said generally that he had either 
been bribed or intimidated. The fact is, however, that 
the latter only was true. During the progress of my 
trial, his wife was permitted to have a secret interview 
with him. She conveyed a letter to him from his fath- 
er, stating that if he stood for acquittal, although con- 
vinced of my innocence, he would be indicted for per- 
jury by reason of certain statements made by him in 
his voir dire examination. Besides this, the letter 
further informed him, that, to hold out for my acquit- 
tal would be to place his own life in peril and his 
property in jeopardy. This the juror himself divulged 
to James B. Finnell, of Georgetown, Kentucky, 
after my trial was ended. It was also observed 
that, during the progress of the argument, Mr. Camp- 
bell warned Mr. Porter in a most personal manner of 
the evils that might befall him were he or any one else 
to " hang " the jury. Porter told Judge Finnell that 
he believed in my innocence, but also believed that he 
would not only be convicted of perjury if he cast his 
ballot for acquittal, but would also be forced to submit 
to the loss of his standing in the community where he 
resided, the ruin of his business, even if he escaped 
with his Hfe. " It is a shame that I did not stand for 
Powers' acquittal," said he, " but I have a wife and 
children to support, and I knew it would ruin me if I 
did." 

After the verdict in my case was read, I was taken 



202 MY OWN STORY 

back to the jail, heavily guarded, closely watched. 
I at once issued the following card : 

Georgetown, Ky., August 20, 1900. 
To the Public: 

I am asked my opinion concerning my trial and the verdict 
of the jury. Could there be but one opinion? Could any fair- 
minded man or woman of this state have but one? That one of 
the greatest judicial farces known to history has been enacted 
here in my trial under the forms of law, no well-informed man 
can doubt. Innocence is no shield with a hundred thousand 
dollars and the methods of Campbellism against you. The 
rectitude of one's past life counts for naught. They say Taylor 
was guilty because he was at his office; and that I am guilty 
because I was away from mine. This has been throughout a 
political trial, for political purposes, and no greater mistake has 
been made by the Democratic party, since it robbed us of the 
offices to which we were fairly elected by the people. There 
are good men and noble women in the Democratic party — 
and many of them. These do not indorse the theft of the state 
offices. Many more will not indorse this mockery of a trial, 
this prostitution of the courts of justice for certain ends. 
From the beginning of the Taylor-Goebel campaign until now, 
I have stood, with what little merit I have had, for the rights 
and liberties of the people. That is my crime. That is the 
offense I have committed. That is the only thing proved 
against me; and that I swore to myself in my testimony. I 
have never had, nor have I now, any apology to make for being 
true to the trust imposed upon me by the majority of the voters 
of the state. History will draw its dark lines around those 
who have outraged me, disgraced the judiciary and blackened 
the reputation of the state. 

I am, very respectfully, 

Caleb Powers. 

The late Colonel W. C P. Breckinridge, in the 
Morning Herald, aptly expressed the aim and object 
of the prosecution of my case when he said : 

" It is evident that the victims were first selected, 



MY DEFENSE AND MY CONVICTION 203 

and not on any grounds of suspicion or any evidence 
of guilt, but for other reasons ; and the victims having 
been selected, then the detectives were turned loose. 
Confessions were secured, men were arrested, threat- 
ened, imprisoned, transported from their homes, held 
in close confinement away from their friends. Bribes, 
promises, threats, imprisonment, and every inducement 
were used to extort statements, coerce, or by confes- 
sions fix the case. Upon the testimony actually admit- 
ted, no intelligent man, who is not the victim of blind 
prejudice, can doubt that the guilt of Caleb Powers 
was not proved ; and upon the entire case we presume 
there can be no serious doubt that an innocent 
man has been illegally convicted under the forms of 
law; and it is the utmost stretch of that respect for 
the courts of the Commonwealth which permits the 
use of the phrase under the forms of law.'* 



CHAPTER XXX 

AFTER THE VERDICT 

I am again taken to the Louisville jail — My reflections on the 
way — I find myself a victim of injustice, with no prospect 
of redress — Charges and countercharges preceding the 
trial of Jim Howard — Summary of the testimony — 
Howard is convicted of shooting Goebel and is sentenced 
to death 

After the court had overruled my motion and 
grounds for a nev^ trial, which my attorney had pre- 
pared in advance of the verdict, it made an order trans- 
ferring me to the Louisville jail for safe-keeping. Mr. 
James W. Reid, the jailer at Georgetown, had shown 
me every possible courtesy and was an open, outspoken 
champion of my cause. He was an anti-Goebel Demo- 
crat of the most pronounced type. I was again hand- 
cuffed ; two strong men took me into custody and es- 
corted me to the depot, where I was placed on the 
Midland train for Frankfort. 

Events had followed one another so rapidly; I had 
been hurled through so many vicissitudes and painful 
ordeals and at so rapid a pace, it seemed, that I had 
found little time for reflection and but small oppor- 
tunity to pause and take my bearings, as it were. The 
storms of passion and hatred had for six weeks 
lashed me so furiously and incessantly that my 
moments were occupied almost wholly with consider- 

204 



AFTER THE VERDICT 205 

ation of the exigencies that each day brought forth. I 
had, therefore, no time for reflection. Neither the 
friends interested in my welfare nor I myself had found 
it possible to pause long enough either to prepare for 
the future or to weigh with any degree of intelligence 
the result of the adverse verdict that had been found 
against me. I was in the center of the maelstrom and 
the angry currents stormed incessantly about me ; it 
was with difficulty that I held my head above the 
waters. It was, therefore, with a feeling of relief that 
I began this journey. En route to Louisville I should 
have at least a few hours that I might devote to reflec- 
tion and to consideration of my future aflfairs. The 
train steamed away, with many kind and earnest words 
of encouragement from my friends still ringing in my 
ears. 

I settled myself in a seat by the open window of the 
car and for a few moments enjoyed the southern 
breeze that fanned my cheeks. The sun was sinking 
in the west, its rays warmly flooding the country 
through which we passed. Slowly it descended until 
it rested for a moment on the rim of the horizon and 
then, lingering but a second, kissed the world good 
night. A solemn stillness came with the fall of the 
curtains of night. Only the noise of the train was 
heard. 

But to the things about me I gave little heed. 
The past rose before my mind's eye like a hideous 
nightmare; my brain vainly struggled to contemplate 
calmly the future that lay before me. My position, 
viewed from all points, was one to fill the stoutest heart 
with despair and to break the spirit of the strongest 
man. My life, from earliest childhood, had been one 



2o6 MY OWN STORY 

of struggle. I began to face the hardships of Hfe 
as a boy; at a most tender age I had taken upon my 
shoulders more than my fair share of the burdens and 
duties of life. I had fought bravely and persistently 
for every inch of vantage ground; slowly I had risen 
from a position of obscurity to one of some little prom- 
inence. Now, however, my ambitions were but empty 
things, my good name was dragged low in the mire 
of disrepute and infamy, my prospects in -life were 
blighted and I was being conveyed from place to place, 
a prisoner, chained like a beast, guarded day and night. 
I thought of my brother, at that moment a fugitive, 
not from justice, but from injustice. I thought of my 
aged father and mother. They had lived for their 
children and had done all within their power to make 
them the best men and women they were capable 
of becoming. Were they now to be made to suffer as 
only parents can suffer because, forsooth, these children 
had entertained no thought more evil than a laudable 
ambition to improve themselves and their station in 
life? It all appeared to me so horrible that I was 
scarcely sure of my own identity. 

But on every side of me were evidences of the ter- 
rible reality of my situation. The trainmen passing 
through the coach, the passengers getting on and off, 
men and women from every walk of life and little chil- 
dren, gazed at my shackled hands — some curiously, 
some insolently, and some pityingly. Where would it 
all end? The prosecution, having convicted me once, 
could not afford to fail in convicting me again, in the 
event of a new trial, since my guilt had become a 
Democratic article of faith — a plank in the party 
platform. This, and a thousand other thoughts flashed 



AFTER THE VERDICT 207 

through my mind; I surveyed for a moment the dis- 
advantages under which I labored. They seemed too 
many to overcome. Yet, withal, I held firmly to the 
belief that justice and right in the end would triumph. 
I believed then, as I believe now, that the old adage that 
murder will out was not framed by an idle brain ; I 
believed then, as I believe now, that there is no nook or 
corner in this broad world of ours so hidden or so re- 
mote that the murderer of Senator Goebel can continue 
to conceal the secret of his crime there. Sometime, 
sooner or later, the criminal will be known. And I 
felt, too, that I owed it to my father and mother, to 
myself, to my state and to my party, to continue the 
fight for my liberty whatever the odds might be against 
final success. 

The conductor interrupted my meditations by calling 
out " Frankfort," and I found myself, when the train 
had stopped, in the midst of the usual throng that as- 
sembles to meet any one who might prove an object 
of interest or curiosity to the public. I was taken with- 
out delay to the county jail, one of Hawthorne's " black 
flowers of civilization " — the crowd following closely 
at my heels. The next morning the journey to Louis- 
ville was resumed. Arriving there, I was hurried at 
once to the county jail, where, much to my surprise 
and pleasure, and much to the chagrin of certain Goebel 
partizans, jailer John R. Pflanz gave me the best quar- 
ters at his disposal. He treated me, also, with all the 
consideration that an honest and humane gentleman 
always exhibits toward those who are unfortunate 
enough to be at his mercy. 

Now that the excitement following my conviction 
was somewhat abated, I settled myself to study and 



2o8 MY OWN STORY 

work. I found that by keeping myself always em- 
ployed, I was able to forget to a certain extent the dis- 
appointments that harassed me. I discovered, also, 
what doubtless many others before me have discovered, 
that happiness does not depend so much on one's en- 
vironment as on one's disposition. I buried myself 
deep in my books, and, while I can not say that I was at 
any time really happy, at least I lessened my misery. 

It will be remembered that the cases of Henry E. 
Youtsey, Dick Combs, Holland Whittaker and Captain 
John Davis, as well as my own, had been set for hear- 
ing at the same special term of the Scott circuit court. 
I now learned that the cases against Combs, Whit- 
taker and Davis had been continued, at the instance of 
the Commonwealth, to the October term. Whittaker, 
Combs and Davis were allowed bail, which they 
promptly executed. Youtsey feigned illness, his case 
was continued, and he was transferred to the Frank- 
fort jail for safe-keeping. The release of the others, 
even under bond, was in the nature of a tacit admis- 
sion on the part of the prosecution that they were not 
implicated in the murder of Mr. Goebel. Neverthe- 
less, Whittaker had been confined continuously in the 
jails of the state since January thirtieth, 1900, Combs 
since April and Davis since March tenth, of the same 
year. It was said by the friends of these men that 
the prosecution, having failed to force a confession 
from them by " sweating," or other process, was com- 
pelled, for political reasons, to liberate them ; otherwise 
its failure either to try them or grant them bail might, 
in the forthcoming campaign, prove a boomerang to 
Mr. Beckham and the Democratic party. 

The campaign, in truth, was assuming an interesting 



AFTER THE VERDICT 209 

stage, and the issues between the two great parties be- 
gan to be more sharply drawn. The release of the 
three men, consequently, was well-timed. Politicians 
of both parties made the most of the action. It was 
well in keeping with the subjects that were then be- 
ing most broadly discussed by the speakers on both 
sides — the assassination of Goebel, the alleged Repub- 
lican conspiracy, and the conduct of my trial by the 
prosecution. The lesser lights of both parties took 
their cues from the leaders and from every rostrum in 
the state these topics were dwelt upon, and they have 
been dwelt upon ever since. 

The Goebel leaders asserted with emphasis that they 
had established the existence of a Republican con- 
spiracy by the conviction of one of the arch-conspir- 
ators. The Republicans, on the other hand, took the 
position that the only conspiracy that had ever existed 
was the one on the part of the Goebel partizans ; set on 
foot to jeopardize the lives and liberty of innocent men 
for the mere sake of political advantage. 

As these charges and countercharges flew back and 
forth, the time for Jim Howard's trial was rapidly ap- 
proaching. « He had been at his home in Clay County 
up to the time when he was formally indicted for the 
murder of Senator Goebel, when he immediately sur- 
rendered. On Friday, September seventh, both the 
Commonwealth and the defense announced themselves 
ready to proceed with the trial, and the work of select- 
ing a jury was at once begun. The means employed 
in summoning and selecting the talesmen resulted 
finally in the impaneling of a jury of twelve Goebel 
Democrats, tried and true, to hear the case. 

The defense contended that Howard was at the 



210 MY OWN STORY 

Board of Trade Hotel at the moment when the fatal 
shot was fired — a distance of several hundred yards 
from the scene of the tragedy. The Commonwealth, 
of course, contended the contrary. It was, therefore, 
as to the whereabouts of Howard at the time Goebel 
was shot that the real battle was fought in the court. 
The prosecution made every effort to prove that How- 
ard was seen standing on the west steps of the Execu- 
tive Building, with a gun in his hands, a few seconds 
after the shooting of Goebel and that, a moment later, 
was seen to vault over the back fence of the Capitol 
grounds. 

The prosecution, in short, sought to establish the 
theory that Howard fired the fatal shot and then imme- 
diately took up a position at the entrance to the Execu- 
tive Building to guard against the approach of any one 
who might be seeking to apprehend Mr. Goebel's mur- 
derer. The defense maintained that, instead of com- 
ing to Frankfort to commit murder, Howard had jour- 
neyed thither to seek at Governor Taylor's hands a 
pardon for the killing of George Baker, who had been 
murdered several years before. It maintained, more- 
over, that Howard had arrived in Frankfort less than 
an hour before Goebel was shot, that he had repaired 
immediately to the Board of Trade Hotel, and that 
he was standing in the lobby of this hostelry when the 
Democratic leader fell, mortally wounded. It con- 
tended that he could not and did not know of any al- 
leged conspiracy to kill Goebel or of any alleged con- 
spirators planning to encompass his death. 

The prosecution introduced evidence to show that 
Howard had been seen standing on the steps of the 
Executive Building soon after the firing of the shot 



AFTER THE VERDICT 211 

and that he was seen to leap over the fence back of 
the Capitol grounds. But there was mconsistency here, 
for some witnesses claimed they saw him in the rear 
of the building- before he was alleged by others to have 
been seen on the steps of the Executive Building. 
Those who claimed to have seen Howard on this oc- 
casion asserted that he wore a short, stubby black 
mustache. The defense, however, proved that Howard 
not only was at the Board of Trade Hotel, but that he 
was clean-shaven at the time of the murder, and, in 
truth, had worn no mustache for more than a year 
previous to January thirtieth, 1900. The defense fur- 
ther proved that Howard did not know Taylor, Finley, 
Youtsey, my brother or myself at the time of the 
tragedy and, therefore, could not and did not enter into 
any conspiracy with any of us. 

The trial continued in progress three weeks. At its 
conclusion the jury found a verdict of guilty and sen- 
tenced the prisoner to death. 

I wish to emphasize the fact that Howard was 
charged with being a principal in the murder of Goebel 
with Taylor, Finley, my brother, myself and others as 
accessories, yet throughout the long trial there was 
never a word of evidence presented even tending to 
show that we were associated in any manner whatso- 
ever in a conspiracy of any kind. On the contrary, it 
was shown by most convincing evidence that Taylor, 
Finley, Youtsey, my brother and I were not acquainted 
with Howard at the time of the murder. Personally, 
I had never laid eyes on Howard until we had both 
been transferred to the Louisville jail, which was not 
until after both of us had been convicted. 

Another strange feature that marked his case and 



212 MY OWN STORY 

mine was that the prosecution had urged against me as 
a point greatly to my disadvantage the fact that I had 
brought the large mountain crowd to Frankfort. It 
will be remembered that the prosecution asserted 
that this was a part of the conspiracy which had 
for its end Goebel's death. Still, when the principals 
were indicted, no man who came down with the moun- 
tain crowd was among them. Neither James Howard, 
nor Berry Howard, nor Youtsey, nor Whittaker, nor 
Combs had anything whatever to do with the bringing 
of the mountaineers to Frankfort, and none of them 
was with the crowd or associated with it in any way. 
Nevertheless, I had been convicted because I brought 
the mountain crowd to the capital, James Howard had 
been sentenced to be hanged for firing the fatal shot, 
but there had not been presented a single word of 
testimony that even remotely connected the two events, 
or connected Howard with me. 



CHAPTER XXXI 

TRIAL OF HENRY E. YOUTSEY 

Campbell's deftly woven statement — Hunted look of the de- 
fendant — His fierce denunciation of Arthur Goebel and 
paroxysmal display of emotion — His illness and his ap- 
pearance in the court-room — Jury returns verdict of 
guilty, with imprisonment for life 

The time was now rapidly approaching for the trial 
of Henry E. Youtsey. It was evident, as the day for 
the hearing came nearer at hand, that Youtsey's attor- 
neys were not ready to proceed with the case. There 
were, perhaps, many reasons for this. Chief among 
them was the strong belief in the public mind that the 
defendant was to some extent connected with the 
commission of the crime charged against him. An- 
other, no doubt, was that the jury before which 
Youtsey was to be tried would be selected with a view 
to making his conviction a certainty. In the effort to 
delay the trial the sparring was vigorous on both sides, 
but, as far as the defense was concerned, without avail. 
Recognizing that delay could not be obtained, 
Youtsey's counsel turned the full force of its batteries 
on the special venire that had been summoned by the 
court in the hope that a " packed " jury might be 
avoided. But the attorneys sought in vain to have the 
names of the jurymen drawn from the wheel in the 
regular way. During the discussion of this matter, 

213 



214 ^iV OWX STORY 

bitter feeling between the court and the lawyers em- 
ployed by the defense was more than once made mani- 
fest. The court ruled against Youtsey, and the jury 
was soon selected from the special venire that had, as 
in my case, been summoned from that section of the 
county where rankled the fiercest hatred against the 
men charged with the murder of Goebel. It is need- 
less to add that the entire jury was composed of the 
most pronounced Goebel Democrats. 

]\Ir. Campbell, with the usual detestable cunning for 
which he was notorious, made the opening statement 
for the prosecution. His declaration was couched in 
terms that indicated a strange combination of villainy 
and much ability. Adroitly and skilfully he recounted 
with fascinating detail the strange events and circum- 
stances upon which the prosecution relied for the con- 
viction of the prisoner. He followed closely the 
damning thread of testimony until the jurors seemed 
almost to feel that the wily attorney was tightening the 
noose about the neck of the unfortimate Youtsey. His 
alleged scheme to kill Goebel from the office of the 
secretary- of state, his presence on one occasion in that 
office with a gun, the purchase of the steel cartridges 
from a Cincinnati firm, his connection and the alleged 
plots with the mysterious Doctor W. R. Johnson, his 
significant talk with Walter R. Day to the effect that he 
could settle the contest with three hundred dollars, the 
bringing of the men from the capitol red brick build- 
ing to the Executive Building just before the shot was 
fired fa theory which the prosecution later aban- 
doned), and lastly, the alleged confession of the pris- 
oner at the Franklin County jail — all these were 
woven with spider-like deftness into the statement pre- 



TRIAL OF HENRY E. YOUTSEY 215 

sented to the jury by the profoundest " shyster " in 
America. 

The face of the prisoner was pale and pinched ; in 
his eyes there was a vacant expression. He had all 
the appearance of a hunted wild animal driven at last 
to bay. His wife, a brave little woman with a heart 
as sweet and gentle as her fortitude is strong, together 
with relatives, sat by his side. 

In the beginning, the case seemed to progress in any- 
thing but a favorable light to the prosecution. The at- 
torneys for the Commonwealth seemed to be discour- 
aged. Witness after witness was introduced, but 
nothing of importance was developed by their testi- 
mony. The attorneys for the defense were elated, but, 
like the confidence of Napoleon before the battle of 
Waterloo, their assurance only presaged the horrible 
reverses that were soon to overtake them. The de- 
fendant's attorneys had been assured repeatedly by 
their client that he was innocent; his wife and his 
other relatives had received the same assurance. It 
was only natural, therefore, that Youtsey's lawyers as 
well as those more intimately concerned in his fate 
should feel at this stage of the trial such confidence in 
its outcome. 

The jury, as in the other cases, was conducted to 
the scene of the tragedy and permitted to view the 
buildings and grounds. When court was again con- 
vened, following this excursion, Arthur Goebel, 
brother of the murdered man, was called and imme- 
diately took the stand as a witness. In the meantime, 
however, all who had accompanied the jury to Frank- 
fort had observed that the prisoner, who also had made 
the journey, was visibly aflfected as he passed through 



2i6 MY OWN STORY 

the corridors, basement and offices in the Executive 
Building. Doubtless his emotion was due to that senti- 
ment of the soul which clusters about past associations. 

Arthur Goebel, who resembles his dead brother in 
physique and facial expression, took the witness- 
stand in the midst of an almost breathless silence. The 
spectators were eager with expectation. The witness 
spoke clearly and distinctly, and, almost with the first 
words that fell from his lips, there came a most sen- 
sational turn in the case. He began to relate a confes- 
sion which, he asserted, Youtsey had made in his pres- 
ence while in the Franklin County jail. He gave, in 
part, with considerable dramatic ability, the details of 
this alleged statement, but all that he said was as 
nothing compared to the scene that interrupted his 
narrative. 

The prisoner suddenly arose from the chair where 
he was seated beside his wife and relatives, and point- 
ing his finger at the witness, launched forth a fierce 
denunciation of Goebel and the statements he had 
made. 

The court-room, in a moment, was the scene of ex- 
citement and confusion. Youtsey, apparently, lost all 
consciousness of his surroundings. He stood where 
he had risen, trembling with emotion, shouting in a 
delirium of excitement, his long arm still pointing in 
the direction of the witness. He spoke rapidly, inco- 
herently; his statements were those of a demented 
man. Suddenly, in the midst of his denunciation, he 
lost all control of himself ; he seemed to be seized with 
a paroxysm of madness. Deputy sheriffs rushed to 
his side, seized him by his arms and body and strug- 
gled to restrain him. The spectators in the court- 



TRIAL OF HENRY E. YOUTSEY 217 

room fled, panic-stricken. Court was adjourned, while 
the demented man still struggled with those who held 
him in restraint. 

The following morning, when court was again con- 
vened, Youtsey's attorneys stated that he was in no 
condition to make a resumption of the trial possible. 
Throughout the night he had been held under re- 
straint, apparently growing but little calmer as the 
hours wore away. Court was again adjourned and, in 
the days following, other adjournments were ordered 
from time to time while Youtsey remained too ill to 
attend the sessions. 

From the beginning, however, the attorneys for the 
prosecution were suspicious of the prisoner, and, after 
several days had elapsed, they charged that he was 
" shamming " and insisted that the trial continue. The 
court finally consented. Youtsey, in the interim, had 
been removed from the jail to a jury-room in the 
court-house where, night and day, his faithful wife and 
his friends attended him. He was now brought into 
the court-room, apparently more dead than alive, and 
the trial continued to a conclusion without further 
interruption. 

The state made out a strong case against the pris- 
oner, proving that he was seen to run down through 
the basement of the Executive Building in a panic- 
stricken condition after the firing of the shot that 
killed Goebel. It established the fact, also, that Yout- 
sey had ordered smokeless powder cartridges from 
Cincinnati on January twenty-second, that he had 
threatened to kill Goebel and that he had talked with 
various individuals over divers schemes to do so. Col- 
onel L. J. Crawford, half-brother of the accused, de- 



2i8 MY OWN STORY 

livered the opening statement for the defense. He was 
calm and deUberate in his denunciation of the methods 
pursued by the prosecution, and outhned with convinc- 
ing logic the case that the defense proposed to present. 
Replete with dramatic scenes, the trial was yet to de- 
velop another. Youtsey, pale, thin-faced, was brought 
from the jury-room where he had been confined since 
his removal from the jail and was borne into the court- 
room on a stretcher. Question after question was put 
to him, but no response fell from his frozen lips. He 
lay on the cot before the jury, apparently unconscious 
and oblivious of his surroundings. He did not tes- 
tify, and the defense, under the circumstances, made 
the best fight it could. 

It was not long after this scene that the hearing of 
evidence closed, and the arguments were begun. The 
speeches of the opposing counsel were extremely bitter. 
Colonel R. W. Nelson spoke five hours for the defense, 
arraigning Mr. Campbell fiercely. For denunciation 
few speeches ever heard in a court-room could equal 
this diatribe. He analyzed Campbell's career as a law- 
yer, flaying him unmercifully and personally charging 
him with almost every offense in the criminal list. 
Campbell was seated with the other attorneys for the 
prosecution when the terrific indictment began, but, as 
Colonel Nelson progressed in his fierce denunciation 
and the torrent of language became more severe 
and caustic, Campbell withdrew to one of the jury- 
rooms where, it is said, he gave way to uncontrol- 
lable feeling. 

The jury retired, and remained out but a few mo- 
ments. It returned, presenting a verdict of guilty, 
sentencing the prisoner to confinement in the peniten- 



TRIAL OF HENRY E. YOUTSEY 219 

tiary for the term of his natural Hfe. A short time 
after the conclusion of the trial, Youtsey recovered and 
seemed to be as well as before. 

Thus ended a trial which, during its progress, was 
replete with incidents more dramatic than any that 
fancy might have invented or that fiction recounts. 
Not a witness introduced, either by the prosecution or 
by the defense, even in the remotest manner connected 
Youtsey and myself. 



CHAPTER XXXII 

A REPUBLICAN JUDGE ELECTED 

Confessions by Anderson and Noakes, admitting they were 
bribed — Youtsey signs an affidavit exonerating me — I am 
encouraged by a change in the poHtical complexion of 
the court of appeals 

It was not long after the verdict in the Youtsey case 
before a fresh impetus was given to the discussion of 
the Goebel tragedy by the avowal of one of the state's 
star-witnesses against me that he had perjured himself 
on the witness-stand. The man who at this time found 
that his conscience had got the better of him was 
Finley Anderson. 

He stated to one of my friends in Newport that he 
was weary of the double life he was leading, and 
ashamed of the wrong he had done me. He declared 
that, for thinking of it, he was allowed neither peace 
of mind nor rest of body. " I want to see Powers' 
people," he said, " and tell them all I know. I can 
show them that he was convicted by lies, and that 
money was paid for the evidence that was offered 
against him. I got some of it myself." 

Anderson then came to Louisville and placed him- 
self in communication with one of my attorneys. 
Later, with this lawyer and other friends, he repaired 
to the Gait House, and on October thirtieth, made an 
affidavit in which he admitted he had perjured him- 

220 



A REPUBLICAN JUDGE ELECTED 221 

self, and set forth in detail how he had been paid by 
Arthur Goebel, T. C. Campbell and Justus Goebel for 
the testimony that he swore to at my trial. This re- 
markable statement is set forth in its original form 
in the Appendix.* 

In my most hopeful moments, however, I had never 
hoped to obtain a confession from Robert Noakes, in 
which he, like Anderson, would admit that he lied. 
But, one day in December, I received a letter from 
Noakes, posted at Vandercook, Illinois, asking that a 
meeting be arranged between himself and some one 
of my counsel. 

How my heart leaped with joy ! I knew intuitively 
that he had at last weakened and had determined to 
repair the wrong he had done me. 

The meeting was arranged without delay and was 
scheduled to occur at Danville, Illinois. There Noakes 
made a statement which in itself is sufficient to make 
every lover of justice and truth turn sick at heart. 
It, alone, was enough to establish before the world my 
complete innocence and make clear also, even to the 
most biased judge, by what hellish devices I had been 
convicted. 

Noakes' statement related how it had been arranged 
by Campbell and others interested in the prosecution 
that he should be arrested on a charge implicating him 
in the murder of Goebel and how, in substance, after 
this arrest, he was to turn state's evidence. He re- 
counted how he had been plied with liquor until he was 
incapable of thought and wholly oblivious of his sur- 
roundings. He asserted that when he took the wit- 
ness-stand in my case he was still under the influence 

* See Appendix A. 



:i22 MY OWN STORY 

of liquor. He told, also, how in various conversations 
with Campbell, the latter admitted that he had bribed 
other men, and not only bribed Noakes, but induced 
Noakes to bribe others. In short, his affidavit laid 
bare the whole vile scheme to secure my conviction at 
any cost, to secure the conviction of other men regard- 
less of the expenditure required and the crimes in- 
volved. Noakes' statement in its unabridged form is 
added in the Appendix * where, I dare say, it will stand 
as one of the most unusual documents of the kind ever 
recorded in any case before a bar of justice. 

In the meantime, I had also become convinced from 
Youtsey's actions and conversations in the Louisville 
jail, where he and Howard had been transferred to 
escape the possibility of mob violence, that he did not 
intend to fight his case further. In other words, I 
became convinced that he intended to accept his sen- 
tence. This possibility alarmed me. He had never 
testified, but he had been offered immunity for his 
testimony. Did this attitude on his part mean that he 
was guilty of the murder of Goebel and would not, 
therefore, risk another trial? Or did it mean that he 
intended to become a witness for the prosecution in 
exchange for his liberty? In the latter event, it went 
without saying that he would repeat any story that 
might be placed in his mouth. Whether he was 
guilty himself I did not know. I did not know 
whether he could give any evidence truthfully that 
would implicate any one, but I did know that he 
was in a position, if Campbell continued his former 
tactics, to become a most dangerous star-witness. I 
knew, moreover, that even his determination to accept 

* See Appendix B. 



A REPUBLICAN JUDGE ELECTED 223 

his sentence would in itself be taken as a tacit admis- 
sion of his guilt. I knew, also, that the prosecution had 
striven mightily to find some connection between 
Youtsey and myself. This fact led to the fear that 
Youtsey, who had weakened already, might be induced 
to weaken further and, if pressed by the wily 
chief of the prosecution's counsel, make a statement 
that would, though perjured, prove a menace to my 
liberty. Then, also, I thought of what horrors might be 
prepared for Youtsey at the state prison where, forced 
to submit to tortures that would break the spirit of any 
man, he might be promised relief in exchange for any 
testimony that might be devised for use against me. 

I resolved, therefore, to exert myself to the utmost 
to obtain a statement from Youtsey before this threat- 
ened calamity could fall upon my head. I approached 
him and he readily agreed to my demand, merely stipu- 
lating that he first consult with his attorneys. This 
was right and proper and met with no objection on my 
part. Letters were immediately exchanged between 
Mr. Kinkead, my attorney, and Mr. Crawford, Yout- 
sey's counsel. Following this correspondence, Youtsey 
made an affidavit in which he declared that he knew 
nothing whatever incriminating against me. 

It is beyond the power of human pen to describe the 
joy I felt when I found that I had not only come 
into possession of confessions from Anderson and 
Noakes, admitting their perjury, but had, as I thought, 
fortified myself against any possible perjury on the 
part of Youtsey. 

During this time, the campaign between Yerkes and 
Beckham had drawn to an end, but the race had been 
so close that the final result was in doubt for two days 



224 MY OWN STORY 

following the closing of the polls. However, when 
all the returns were in, they showed that Beckham had 
received a plurality of three thousand five hundred and 
eighteen, but that he had run four thousand five hun- 
dred and eighty votes behind the presidential candidate, 
William Jennings Bryan. The Republicans claimed 
that tactics were employed by the Democrats to pre- 
vent many voters favorable to Mr. Yerkes from casting 
their ballots. A second contest, therefore, was freely 
discussed, but was eventually abandoned, although the 
Republicans never conceded that Mr. Beckham had 
been fairly elected. Nevertheless he would serve as 
governor of the state until December, 1903. 

The result of the election, however, afforded me 
some cause for rejoicing. While the governorship had 
been lost, an appellate judgeship had been won. Up 
to this time, the Democrats had held a majority in this 
court. The election of Judge O'Rear now gave the 
Republicans a majority of one, the court standing four 
to three in favor of the Republicans. I felt then that 
the election of Judge O'Rear was to me a godsend; 
and future events will show that I was not mistaken. 

On February fifth, the day before the time set for 
hearing the motions in the Youtsey case — one for a 
new trial and the other to inquire into his mental condi- 
tion — he was transferred to Georgetown, and from 
thence to the state prison at Frankfort. His attorneys 
had dismissed both motions ; he desired to accept his 
sentence. My fears were thus confirmed, but I con- 
gratulated myself that my forethought had made it 
possible to save myself now from any contingency 
that might arise from this move. I was, at the same 
time, transferred to the Frankfort jail. 



CHAPTER XXXIII 

A NEW TRIAL GRANTED 

Four Republican appellate judges grant Howard and myself 
new trials — Colonel W. C, P. Breckinridge's arraignment 
of the Democratic judges — Continuation of the prosecu- 
tion's " Hang and damn " policy — Captain Ripley's ac- 
quittal — Judge Cantrill's famous charge to the Grand 
Jury. 

For some time I had been daily expecting the deci- 
sion of the court of appeals. There was nothing to do 
but wait ; and there is nothing so wearying or so wear- 
ing as simply waiting. On March twenty-eighth, 
however, my suspense was at an end ; the court of ap- 
peals handed down decisions in Howard's case and in 
mine, reversing the judgments of the lower courts in 
both, and deciding that both of us had received 
illegal and unfair trials. The court had divided along 
political lines in my case. The four Republican 
judges concurred in the majority opinion in favor of 
a reversal, while the Democratic judges voted to sus- 
tain the lower court, and handed down a strong dis- 
senting opinion, in which they took the position 
that I was guilty of the crime charged against me and 
that my substantial rights had not been violated. The 
dissenting opinion, stripped of legal verbiage, said that 
whatever errors the lower court had made in the trial 
of my case, they were not of serious moment, as I was 
a guilty criminal and had received no more than my 

225 



226 MY OWN STORY 

just deserts. This decision was a severe blow to me. 
If members of the highest court of the state should put 
themselves on record as believing in my guilt, what 
could be expected of the average Democratic layman, 
who might, in the future, be called upon to pass upon 
the merits of my case, in the capacity of a juror? I 
do not state it as a fact, but I am told by lawyers of 
unquestionable ability that mine is the first felony case 
in the history of the state of Kentucky where any 
appellate judge, handing down a dissenting opinion, 
ever took the position that the appellant (defendant) 
was guilty of the crime charged against him, and that 
his punishment was deserved. While it is true that 
members of the appellate court often differ upon propo- 
sitions of law, in felony as in civil cases, yet rarely, if 
ever, do they throw the weight of their personal influ- 
ence, as well as the influence of their official position 
against a fellow creature, struggling for his life. 

Colonel W. C. P. Breckinridge said of it editorially, 
in the Morning Herald: " We regret the argument 
made by Judge White to establish the guilt of Caleb 
Powers. The argument made by him, and concurred 
in by the other judges, is capable of being construed to 
be prepared for the purpose of justifying another jury 
in finding him guilty, and is meant to give the weight 
of the official and personal character of these gentle- 
men to the prosecution. Under the act known as the 
Hardin Law, which was an ill-advised law and has 
been the cause of much bad law in the decisions of the 
court of appeals, these judges have felt that they 
had the right to pass upon the facts as well as upon 
the law and to decide whether errors made by the 
court below were prejudicial to the substantial rights 



A NEW TRIAL GRANTED 227 

of the defendant. They have construed this phrase 
'prejudicial to the rights of the defendant' to mean, 
that if, in the judgment of the court of appeals, the 
defendant ought to have been convicted and was con- 
victed, no error was prejudicial. Of course, many 
people will agree with the conclusion reached by 
Mr. Justice White that the errors committed by 
the circuit judge were not prejudicial to the sub- 
stantial rights of Mr. Powers, for two reasons : First, 
because one class of those who agree with him believes 
that Mr. Powers is guilty, and ought to be punished; 
second, the other class is certain that the jury would 
have convicted Mr. Powers, no matter what tes- 
timony was admitted or rejected, or what instructions 
the court gave or refused; and that the conclusion 
would have been precisely the same, if the ruling of the 
judge had been free from error. But this is not the 
law. This is not what the statute was framed to ac- 
complish, and this opinion of these gentlemen can have 
no other effect than to be used to justify the officers of 
the lower court in the partizan selection of a jury, and 
to justify the jury in finding Mr. Powers guilty, even 
if illegal testimony be introduced and illegal instruc- 
tions be given. 

" We confess to a keen disappointment that the re- 
versal in the Powers case did not receive the assent of 
the Democratic judges. Our conception of the errors 
in that case was so strong that it did not occur to us as 
possible that the reversal did not receive the assent of 
some of the Democratic members of the court. The 
errors committed by the trial judge in admission of 
the testimony seemed to us so glaring, so numerous, so 
shocking, that we have never been able to believe that 



228 MY OWN STORY 

a judge of the court of appeals would sustain these 
rulings. We thought it possible this might have been 
done a year ago under the excitement which has 
seemed to possess and control the court of appeals, as 
fully as it did the most conscienceless members of the 
Legislature. The instructions given by the circuit 
judge were substantially peremptory instructions to 
find for the Commonwealth ; in form it left the ques- 
tion of Mr. Powers' guilt to the jury, but in substance 
took that question away from the jury and substantially 
ordered the jury to find him guilty of the murder of 
Mr. Goebel, if he was in any way involved in bring- 
ing the mountaineers to Frankfort. These instruc- 
tions will be condemned by every lawyer who has any 
conception of criminal law anywhere in the world 
outside of Kentucky, and if any judge of the court of 
appeals has put himself on record as approving these 
instructions, he will never recover from its effect, and 
it will remain a blemish upon his judicial reputation 
for both learning and fairness as long as the opinion 
remains a part of the judicial records of the state." 

After studying carefully the opinion in my case, as 
published in the Evening Post, I gave out an interview 
to a reporter for that paper, in which I said : " It is 
not the duty of the Republican party or those who vote 
with it, to run down the assassin of Senator Goebel. 
That duty devolves upon the prosecution in these 
cases ; but the prosecution has not done this, and in all 
probability never will. This being true, the Republi- 
can party will have to do it or suffer for it." 

I wished to impress upon the Republican party and 
my friends through the state, that the surest road to 
relief for me was for them to assist in trying to ex- 



A NEW TRIAL GRANTED 229 

pose the murderer of Mr. Goebel. It was not to the 
interest of the Democrats to do this, but very impor- 
tant that the Repubhcans should. 

The fact that the prosecution was forced to try some 
of its own witnesses for perjury did not deter it, how- 
ever, from pursuing its '' hang and damn " poHcy, or 
from trying other men for alleged complicity in the 
murder of Mr. Goebel. Captain Garnett D. Ripley, in- 
dicted at the January term (1901) of the Franklin cir- 
cuit court, and charged with being an accessory before 
the fact to the murder of Mr. Goebel, was the next on 
the list. It was said at the time of Ripley's arrest that 
he knew some very damaging facts against Governor 
Taylor. It seemed to be the intention of the prosecu- 
tion to make a witness of Captain Ripley and to give 
him his liberty in exchange for whatever he might 
offer. He had been thrown into intimate relationship 
with Taylor, and was consequently in a position to 
know a great many damaging things against Taylor, 
the prosecution argued, especially when his own liberty 
depended upon this knowledge. 

But Ripley did not turn out to be a Golden, a Noakes 
or a Culton. He told me with his own lips that he 
was offered immunity for testimony, but that he 
promptly refused. Ripley was not' for sale. The 
prosecution, consequently, was forced either to try him 
or give him bail, as it had given Davis, Combs and 
Whittaker. 

Nearly a year had elapsed since the Goebel murder 
before Captain Ripley was indicted, and more than a 
year before he was arrested. The prosecution could 
not very well afford to confess that it did not know, 
after a year's investigation, who among all those ar- 



^3o MY OWN STORY 

rested was guilty of the Goebel murder. From the 
necessities of the case, Captain Ripley had to be tried. 
The trial began in April, and at its conclusion the jury 
brought in a verdict of '* not guilty." 

There were few developments in the weeks that 
passed until, on September ninth, 1901, when Judge 
Cantrill delivered his famous charge to the Franklin 
grand jury. Cantrill was at that time in the campaign 
for United States senator. He was badly defeated 
finally, although it was said in his favor that he had 
rendered the Democratic party much service in his 
judicial capacity. After the grand jury had been im- 
paneled, Judge Cantrill, in his own peculiar vein, pro- 
ceeded with his instructions which are given herewith, 
in part, as repeated in the daily press. 

After alluding to the assassination of President 
McKinley, he said : " It has not been two years since 
this grand old Commonwealth was shaken from center 
to circumference by a similar tragedy. On Capitol 
Square, one of the leading citizens of your state was 
shot down in a similar manner. It is deplorable and 
humiliating to have to admit that there are certain ele- 
ments in Kentucky, that, if they did not openly ap- 
prove the act, were willing to excuse it. The pulpit, 
as a rule, sent up no supplications to the Throne of 
Grace that the life of William Goebel should be spared 
to their Commonwealth. If there were any expres- 
sions or indications as to the feeling of the pulpit at 
that particular time, I know nothing of them; and if 
there were any prayers to the Throne of Grace, they 
were secret prayers that the life of that brave citizen 
should not be spared, but that the party, which was 
making the contest against him for office, should be 



A NEW TRIAL GRANTED 231 

his successor. I know whereof I speak. You know 
the character and conduct of the pulpit in your com- 
munity at that time, and I am advised, and I know, 
that throughout all the length and breadth of the state 
of Kentucky, there was no condemnation of anarchy 
nor was there any denunciation of the assassination. 
I do not want, nor do I intend, so far as I am con- 
cerned, that the people of this Commonwealth shall 
forget the great crime and outrage which was perpe- 
trated within its borders." Referring to the attitude 
of a certain part of the press, he said : " I do not 
hesitate one moment to denounce it as the conduct of a 
lot of treacherous, cowardly, libelous curs, that no 
community ought to tolerate." 

It was in such terms that this wonderful judge con- 
tinued his most wonderful charge. Comment upon it 
is unnecessary. I merely wish to add that the judge 
who delivered this remarkable statement was the one 
before whom my first trial had already been held, and 
before whom my second was soon to take place. 



CHAPTER XXXIV 

Again before judge cantrill 

Governor Durbin declines to honor requisitions for Taylor and 
Finley — My second trial a repetition of the first — Judge 
Cantrill refuses to vacate the bench — Twelve partizan 
Goebel Democrats act as jurymen — Am again convicted, 
and sentenced for life 

As my case w^as to be called for trial on October 
eighth, 1901, it was necessary for the prosecution to 
revive the partizan passions of the past. Cantrill's in- 
flammatory charge to the grand jury had in a measure 
spent its force. Requisition papers therefore were 
again issued for Taylor and Finley, and this time were 
refused by Governor Winfield T. Durbin, who had suc- 
ceeded Governor Mount as chief executive of the state 
of Indiana. 

As soon as I arrived at Georgetown for my second 
trial, Cantrill again showed the cloven hoof by having 
an order served on the jailer forbidding him to allow 
*' either women or preachers to see me." 

My case was called for trial on Tuesday, October 
eighth, 1901 ; and my counsel promptly filed a vigor- 
ous affidavit, attempting to remove Judge Cantrill from 
the bench. The affidavit stated in substance that 
Judge Cantrill was an ardent Democrat, while the de- 
fendant was a strong Republican ; that the judge was 
a warm personal friend of the deceased, William 

232 



AGAIN BEFORE JUDGE CANTRILL 233 

Goebel; that he (Cantrill) was then a candidate for the 
United States senatorship and had not only shown 
strong poUtical feeling against the men accused of 
the murder of Senator Goebel, but was then attempting 
to enhance his candidacy for the office he sought by 
his persecution of the men accused of the Goebel mur- 
der ; that the case made out against me during my first 
trial and the conviction therein was largely brought 
about by the illegal and unjust rulings of Judge Can- 
trill. The affidavit stated further that the judgment in 
my case had been reversed by the appellate court, and 
the order of conviction set aside, because Cantrill's rul- 
ings were found to be illegal, unfair, and prejudicial 
to my substantial rights ; that Judge Cantrill in his 
recent charge to the Franklin County grand jury, took 
advantage of the opportunity and made a stump speech 
of abuse in the guise of a charge to the grand jury, in 
which he bitterly attacked all those accused of the 
murder of Senator Goebel ; that the recent order of the 
judge commanding the jailer of Scott County not to 
" permit any preachers and women " to visit me was a 
palpable exhibition of his enmity toward me. 

The affidavit also stated that about fifty-five per 
cent, of the voters of Scott County were Democrats, 
and about forty-five pe'r cent. Republicans ; and, that of 
the latter not more than twenty per cent, were negroes ; 
that Henry Youtsey, one of the accused, was given a 
solidly Democratic jury when he was tried and con- 
victed ; that the same was true of James Howard, an- 
other accused, and that I had been given a soHdly 
Democratic jury on my first trial. 

Judge Cantrill promptly overruled the affidavit, said 
he proposed to try the case, and the selection of the 



234 MY OWN STORY 

jury was begun. The same tactics were resorted 
to by the prosecution as had been used in the selec- 
tion of all the juries in the trials of the Goebel sus- 
pects — the sheriff failing and refusing to summon 
practically any Republicans or Independent Democrats. 
To begin with, the jury- wheel had been packed with 
the names of Goebel partizans by three partizan Goebel 
Democrats, appointed by Judge Cantrill, and one of 
whom, B. S. Calvert, had served on my first jury. 
Out of the two hundred names drawn from the jury- 
wheel, five only were Republicans ; these were excused 
by the court and the Commonwealth from jury service. 

Not enough of the two hundred venire-men, directed 
to be summoned, of whom one hundred and twenty-five 
were actually summoned, — three of them Republicans, 
— qualified to make up the jury, and the sheriff and 
his deputies were directed to go to the adjoining county 
of Bourbon on a summoning tour. They were es- 
corted on this mission by three Democratic office-hold- 
ers of the county of Bourbon, who knew the political 
affiliations of every family in the county. The Scott 
County officers, piloted by their escorts, passed by the 
homes of Republicans and Independent Democrats. 
Goebel Democrats were even selected and summoned 
from the very midst of groups of Republicans and 
Independent Democrats. Among one hundred and 
sixty-eight venire-men summoned from Bourbon Coun- 
ty there were only three Republicans. 

The result was that when the jury was finally made 
up, it was composed of twelve partizan Goebel Demo- 
crats. The tcial then proceeded. While the witnesses 
and the evidence were in many respects about the same 
as upon my first trial, the prosecution had suffered 




Judge James E. Caiurill 



Judge Joseph E. Robbins 
Judge "Dan " Moore 



THE JUDGES DURING MY TRIALS 



AGAIN BEFORE JUDGE CANTRILL 235 

the loss of " strolling barber " Weaver, perjured Fin- 
ley Anderson and lying Bob Noakes, while the defense 
introduced a number of new and important witnesses. 

At the close of the testimony in the case the opinion 
prevailed that the defense had the advantage. Even the 
Courier- Journal admitted that I made a good witness 
for myself, saying : " He kept his balance and made 
replies that were sharp cuts at the Commonwealth, and 
arguments within themselves." While the defense 
made out a stronger case than at the former trial, it 
labored, nevertheless, with almost insurmountable dif- 
ficulties. My filing an affidavit for the removal of 
Cantrill had so nettled him that he was even more ty- 
rannical than during the first trial. He was not on 
speaking terms with some of my lawyers and through- 
out the court procedure showed plainly how bitter was 
his hatred for them. He frequently contradicted them 
in regard to what had occurred during the progress 
of the trial, fined them upon the slightest provocation, 
and issued capiases forthwith. At the conclusion of 
the arguments in the case, the jury returned its verdict, 
and again sentenced me to life imprisonment. 

My attorneys filed their motion for a new trial and 
Judge Cantrill promptly overruled it. Then, turning 
to me, he said : " Caleb Powers, stand up. Have you 
any reasons to give why sentence should not be pro- 
nounced upon you ? " 

I replied : " I have reasons, sir ; but they will avail 
me nothing in this court." 

The court then said : " I now sentence you to confine- 
ment for the remainder of your natural life, at hard 
labor, in the state penitentiary at Frankfort." 

The judgment was then suspended pending an ap- 



236 MY OWN STORY 

peal, and my counsel was given until the first day of 
the February term of court to prepare the bill of ex- 
ceptions. 

Sentencing me to life imprisonment did not quite 
satisfy Cantrill's animosity, for, turning to the clerk, 
he commanded that official to enter an order transfer- 
ring me to the Franklin County jail. He then said 
to the sheriff : ^' Remove the prisoner." I was heavily 
handcuffed and then marched through the streets of 
Georgetown, guarded by eight deputy sheriffs, three in 
front, three behind, and one on each side of me. Two 
of the jurymen boarded the same train and seated 
themselves just in front of me. On reaching their 
station, one of them, T. E. Gayle, arose from his seat, 
and I heard him say to his companion : " I intend shak- 
ing hands with that young man before I leave the 
train." He advanced toward me, grasped my hand 
warmly, and said : " Good-by, my friend. May God 
bless you and protect you." 

" May He not forget you," I replied, " for there Is 
no doubt you need His mercy more than I do." And 
so we parted. 

That night he slept under the roof of his home, sur- 
rounded, perhaps, by wife and loved ones, while I 
lay behind the bars of a bastile, fettered and branded 
as a felon. 



CHAPTER XXXV 

YOUTSEY AND THE PROSECUTION 

J. B. Howard's second trial results in change of sentence to life 
imprisonment — Berry Howard's acquittal — Attempts to 
induce Youtsey to make a " new " confession — Torture 
at last produces a statement that is satisfactory to the 
prosecution — My own position becomes more grave 

The second trial of James B. Howard began January 
seventh, 1902. The work of impaneling the jury was 
immediately begun and, when completed, the jury was 
composed of the inevitable twelve Goebel Democrats. 
When the prosecution closed its case, Howard had not 
been connected by any testimony with either the al- 
leged principals in the murder of Goebel or the al- 
leged accessories. In the end, however, the jury 
returned a verdict of guilty, sentencing the prisoner to 
imprisonment for life. Howard's attorneys appealed 
the case. 

Then followed the trial of Berry Howard. He had 
been a " fugitive from justice," as the prosecution ex- 
pressed it, for nearly two^ years, and during this time 
there had been standing a reward for his capture and 
his conviction. He had, however, been finally arrested 
and had no sooner been lodged in jail than the prosecu- 
tion sought to make a star-witness of him, as it had of 
others. Youtsey 's statement to Arthur Goebel, that 
Howard was one of the principals, estabhshed the 

237 



238 MY OWN STORY 

ground on which the prisoner was approached. But 
Howard unhesitatingly and positively declined to act 
as a witness for the prosecution. His arrest had not 
been any " fake," as alleged by some. He did not pose 
— heroic people never do. 

Defeated in their purpose, the attorneys for the Com- 
monwealth, led by the redoubtable Campbell, now 
sought to make good the charge against Howard. It 
would never do, they well knew, to give him his free- 
dom without a trial. Nevertheless, evidence to con- 
vict him was not at hand, and, in this particular case, 
could not be procured. 

During my first trial, it was established by the testi- 
mony of Doctor G. W. Prewitt and John Perkins that 
Dick Combs was not in the private office of the secre- 
tary of state at the time the fatal shot was fired. 
Combs, accordingly, had been released on bond. Yout- 
sey had further asserted that not only was Combs in 
my office at the time, but that Berry Howard was pres- 
ent also. At the time Combs was admitted to bail, 
the Goebel press made much of the fact, but it neg- 
lected to give any prominence to the fact that Howard, 
the " fugitive from justice," was exonerated of all con- 
nection with the crime by establishing an alibi with 
similarly strong evidence. Instead, for two years, he 
had been referred to as fleeing from arrest, an outlaw, 
afraid to face the charge against him. The prosecu- 
tion realized that a blunder had been made, but that, 
after the months that had elapsed and the statements 
that had been made, there remained nothing to do but 
induce Howard to turn state's evidence, or bring 
him to trial. He put an end to negotiations to accom- 
plish the former himself, and the prosecution, therefore, 



YOUTSEY AND THE PROSECUTION 239 

hastened his hearing. He was acquitted, the prosecu- 
tion informing the pubHc through the medium of its 
faithful press that whenever a man suspected of the 
murder of Goebel was innocent, he was acquitted, but 
when guihy, he was convicted. 

After my case had been finally submitted and prior 
to the November election, 1902, at which four Demo- 
cratic judges of the court of appeals had been elected, 
a iuW bench had scarcely ever been present in Frank- 
fort, so my case had not been considered. During the 
interval, or at least, before my case was passed upon, 
Henry Youtsey, who was in the state penitentiary, 
made two other " confessions." In the third confes- 
sion, Youtsey accused James Howard of shooting Mr. 
Goebel from my office, at the instance of Governor 
Taylor, myself, and others. It was further intimated 
that he implicated many other persons, some of them 
men of prominence, whose names had not heretofore 
been brought into the case. While the public general- 
ly looked upon Youtsey's revised " confession " with 
much suspicion, still it had to be reckoned with. My 
friends were alarmed ; my enemies delighted. 

" Ere the snow flies before advancing spring, there 
will be a rattling of dry bones that will shake the 
Commonwealth from one end to the other," said one 
paper, 

" The evidence now in the possession of the Com- 
monwealth will be absolutely damning against Howard 
and Powers," said another ; while another said : 
" They will not live till flowers bloom again." 

Many of my friends urged me to dismiss my appeal, 
go to the penitentiary, save my life, and await my vin- 
dication, which must come some day. They insisted 



240 MY OWN STORY 

that, however innocent I might be, I was liable to lose 
my life in the whirlpool of corruption, political neces- 
sity and revenge, before the frenzy of the times sub- 
sided. They urged that the Democrats would have a 
majority on the appellate bench after the first of Janu- 
ary, 1903, and that, in all probability, its Democratic 
members would affirm any sentence that might be re- 
turned against me in the future; and that the Demo- 
cratic governor was already pledged to its execution, 
whatever it might be. 

It was evident that Youtsey had gone over to the 
prosecution, body and soul, and would, in the hope 
of gaining his freedom, or relieving the horrors of his 
situation, rehearse on the witness-stand any part in 
the drama which might be prepared for him. It was 
known to his friends that he had been made to suffer 
the tortures of the damned while in the penitentiary, 
and before he had " confessed." He had shoveled coal 
into the " fiery " furnace by the side of two negro 
companions during the sweltering days of July and 
August, 1901, when the thermometer was ranging from 
ninety-five to one hundred and ten degrees ; he had, for 
eight consecutive Sundays, according to the statement 
of his faithful wife, been locked up in a dark cell and 
fed on bread and water, while other prisoners enjoyed 
the freedom of the grounds and their Sunday dinner; 
at other times, he was forced to wear the ball and chain 
and was subjected to even greater torture and humilia- 
tion. He was carried from the life-killing boiler-room 
to a dangerous machine shop, where he became en- 
tangled in the machinery, losing part of one hand and 
almost his life. He began to die ; he told the warden 
that he could not live without better treatment and bet- 



YOUTSEY AND THE PROSECUTION 241 

ter food. The warden urged him to '' confess ;" in- 
creased his labors and hardships, and told Mrs. Yout- 
sey that her husband knew how his burdens could be 
lightened. Youtsey told her he could not live. She 
implored him to act honorably, and tell the truth fear- 
lessly upon all occasions and under all circumstances. 
She had visited him frequently after his incarceration, 
until the winter and spring of 1902, when her visits 
were curtailed by the penitentiary authorities ; and soon 
she was refused the privilege of seeing her husband at 
all. Even the Cincinnati Enquirer, November fif- 
teenth, said, in speaking of Mrs. Youtsey after she had 
paid a visit to the penitentiary : " She suffered a 
severe nervous and hysterical attack, the attention of 
physicians being necessary. It is said that this was 
caused by learning that her husband had been flogged." 
The cruelties and tortures to which Youtsey was being 
subjected were generally known ; and it was freely said 
that he had agreed to swear to anything in the hope of 
alleviating the misery of his condition, and possibly, 
in time, gaining his freedom. As a matter of fact 
from the very moment of Youtsey's arrest, the public 
looked upon him with suspicion. As one wayward 
step destroys a character which has been " as chaste as 
ice, as pure as snow," so the alleged confession of 
Youtsey to Arthur Goebel and Tom Campbell, on the 
night of his arrest, took from him whatever respect he 
had gained for himself through life. According to his 
alleged confession, which, at that time, was not fully 
credited, he was either both a murderer and a traitor, 
or was telling a falsehood upon innocent men to save 
himself from punishment. It turned out that he had 
made false statements then, and implicated a number 



242 MY OWN STORY 

of innocent men, trying to shield himself. He did not 
gain much in public opinion in the months which fol- 
lowed his arrest, and to hold him as much as possible 
above reproach, his close friends bitterly denied that 
he had made a confession or knew anything to con- 
fess. When my first trial came up, July, 1900 — and 
conference after conference was held between Yout- 
sey's friends and the lawyers for the prosecution for 
the purpose of agreeing upon terms to gain immuni- 
ty in exchange for Youtsey's testimony, the faith of 
those who had believed in his integrity received an- 
other blow, although these conferences and their pur- 
pose were kept, to a great extent, sub rosa. When, 
on a plea of illness, Youtsey had succeeded in evad- 
ing trial till October, 1900, and then, in the midst 
of the testimony for the prosecution, had a " connip- 
tion " fit, and, during the remainder of his trial, lay on 
a couch in an apparently comatose condition, many lost 
confidence in his innocence, though others believed that 
his pretended fit was genuine. When, however, after 
conviction, he refused to prosecute his appeal, and 
accepted imprisonment for life without protest, the 
consensus of opinion, even among Republicans, was 
that he was guilty. After his incarceration, it was per- 
sistently rumored that he was to become a witness 
in the Goebel cases, and, as he had never testified 
in his own or any of the other cases, he was in a posi- 
tion to tell a fresh story woven by the inimitable Tom 
Campbell to fit the matured theory of the Common- 
wealth. As the private secretary of Auditor Sweeney, 
he had, necessarily, since the contest began, come 
in contact in a social or business capacity, with many 
men, and possibly, some prominent in the councils of 



YOUTSEY AND THE PROSECUTION 243 

the party. At such times and places as he chanced to 
see them, he could easily put in the mouth of any one 
of them any statement regarding the assassination of 
Senator Goebel that was desired by the prosecution. 
This might be done regarding any man who stood high 
in the Republican party, even men who had never been 
indicted. If men who had never been formally 
charged with Mr. Goebel's murder, stood in danger, 
what shall be said of those who had been tried and 
twice convicted for alleged complicity and who must 
be kept convicted in order to substantiate the claim of 
a Republican conspiracy? Three men must be impli- 
cated by Youtsey — James Howard, and I, who had 
been twice convicted, and Taylor who was a " fugi- 
tive from justice." The prosecution and the Demo- 
cratic party could not afford to admit by Youtsey's 
failure to implicate us that we were not guilty of com- 
plicity in Goebel's murder; that Republican governors 
of Indiana (Mount and Durbin) had done right in 
refusing to honor requisitions issued by the Democratic 
governor of Kentucky ; that James Howard had been 
sentenced to be hanged and I had been sentenced to life 
imprisonment, when, in reality, we were innocent of the 
charge brought against us. Such an admission would 
shake the faith of the country in the Goebel jury trials, 
and brand the courts as engines of oppression. I knew 
that the prosecution was compelled, through Youtsey, 
to make good its charge of a conspiracy, or confess to 
the public that it had committed a series of monstrous, 
unspeakable wrongs. This it would never do. Never 
would it permit Youtsey to say that he had killed Goe- 
bel on his own volition, and that no Republican official 
was responsible for the murder. With its reputation 



244 MY OWN STORY 

( ?) at stake, and the saving of it dependent on the 
action of a weak, villainous convict, who was complete- 
ly in its power, and at the same time chafing at prison- 
life, dying from its effects, and longing for freedom, 
it was easy to determine what would be its course. 
Youtsey, as has been said, confessed. His second con- 
fession did not meet the approval of the prosecution. 
It was sent back to him ; he burned it, and also his 
short-hand notes of it. It is said that this confession, 
like his first, did not implicate me in the remotest way. 
Youtsey's torture was increased, and it was not until 
he had made his third and satisfactory " confession," 
to which reference has been made, that his hardships 
were mitigated. Then he was not only relieved from 
labor, excused from work, put in the hospital, fed on 
the best the prison afforded, but was relieved of his 
stripes, and practically made free of the prison. I felt 
sure that if I went to the penitentiary, I would event- 
ually be given my liberty, for I knew then, as I know 
now, that the mystery surrounding Mr. GoebeFs mur- 
der must some day be cleared away, and the innocent 
relieved of suspicion. I was not unmindful then, or am 
I now, of the danger to which I exposed my life by re- 
fusing to dismiss my appeal and go to the penitentiary ; 
but I resolved, whatever fate befell me, to stand firm 
and unfaltering and to contend for my rights and my 
liberty, my integrity and my honor, if it cost me my 
life. I was, and am yet, determined never to appear 
guilty by failure to fight my case or in any other way. 
I will never bring shame and disgrace upon the state 
and a dead father's name by a weak acquiescence in a 
dastardly charge of which I am innocent. I resolved 
that if the state officials resorted to murder, the blood 



YOUTSEY AND THE PROSECUTION 245 

and shame should be upon their hands, not mine. I 
was satisfied both before and after Youtsey made his 
third confession, that I would be tried again, because 
I felt sure that the court of appeals would grant me a 
new trial, which it did on December third, 1902; but 
the Democratic judges again handed down a strong 
dissenting opinion, in which they said : ^' He is posi- 
tively connected with the conspiracy by two confessed 
participants in it." 



CHAPTER XXXVI 

Howard's third trial 

Cecil's remarkable testimony — Youtsey tells a long story, but 
fails to connect me with the so-called conspiracy to kill 
Senator Goebel — Admits having perjured himself, when 
confronted with affidavits — Is again convicted and sen- 
tenced 

Howard's case was called for the third time on the 
seventh of April, 1903. After some delays, the trial 
began and Howard was provided with a solid Goebelite 
jury to try him for his life. The Commonwealth, it 
is needless to say, had resorted to its usual tactics in 
summoning and selecting the jury. 

The testimony of Cecil and Youtsey afforded the 
sensation of the trial. When Cecil took the stand, the 
spectators in the court-room made every effort to catch 
a glimpse of the man who had been heralded as one of 
the state's new star-witnesses. Over two years had 
passed since he had been indicted for complicity in the 
Goebel murder ; for over two years he had been a fugi- 
tive — I can not say from justice. At last he was on 
the witness-stand at the instance of the prosecution; 
swearing to anything to secure immunity for himself. 
His intelligence is far above the average, and, judging 
from his general demeanor, one would never suspect 
that his life had been that of a desperado and criminal. 

Cecil told his story of a proposed butchery of the 

246 



HOWARD'S THIRD TRIAL 247 

Democrats at Frankfort, January, 1900, and of his will- 
ingness to see Senator Goebel assassinated, with the 
nonchalance of one to whom murder plots were no 
more than plans for picnic parties. He asserted calm- 
ly that he had not wanted to get into the murder him- 
self, but that he had not been " particular how it [the 
contest] was settled, so it was settled. I wanted to 
see Taylor seated," he said. He testified, however, 
that he was not a party to the killing of Senator 
Goebel ; that he had never entered into a conspiracy 
with anybody to bring about that result, and knew 
nothing of any plan or arrangement on the part of 
anybody to have Goebel killed. Nevertheless, he swore 
that he was in my private office in Frankfort on the 
twenty-ninth of January, and that I told him there that 
I was looking for a man to come to Frankfort the next 
morning to kill Goebel, but that he was so little con- 
cerned about it himself that he did not ask me the name 
of the man. 

Although the testimony of Cecil, as well as that of 
some other witnesses in other trials, was sensational and 
would indicate, if true, that I indorsed murder, still 
no witness had ever been introduced in any of these 
trials, either by the prosecution or the defense^ who 
professed to know anything about any murderous 
plot, if such there was, zvhich resulted in the death of 
Senator Goebel. Other witnesses had testified to this 
circumstance, this one here and that one there ; others 
had told of hearing incendiary speeches, and of the lay- 
ing of murderous plans on the part of divers individ- 
uals, but no witness had ever professed to knozv any- 
thing about a plot that actually resulted in the death of 
Senator Goebel, if any such plot had been formed. The 



248 MY OWN STORY 

alleged conspirators and murderers, who were accused 
of planning and plotting to that end, had never been 
placed together by any witness. The place where the 
conspiracy to murder Senator Goebel had its inception, 
or the persons present and participating at its incep- 
tion, had never been revealed by any witness. Who 
had fired the fatal shot, nobody knew; whether anybody 
had procured some one to fire it, was equally unknown. 
What the assassin received for his service was likewise 
specidation. Who, if anybody, was present aiding and 
abetting the assassin, was as much unknown as were 
the real conspirators. In fact, the Goebel murder was 
a mystery. 

It was expected by those who had not studied the 
real purpose of the prosecution, that Youtsey would 
unfold the " hideous details of the darkest crime in 
Kentucky's history," while others felt that he would 
tell any story that would assist in procuring his free- 
dom, or in alleviating the horrors of his prison life. 
Whether Youtsey would tell of his own connection with 
the murder of Mr. Goebel, and drag into it the names 
of innocent men, at the same time, weaving a story, 
or rehearsing one woven for him, so as to make it stand 
as a complete and convincing whole, was what most 
concerned the wrongfully accused. No one knows 
better the force of stories, com.posed of half-truths and 
half-falsehoods, than those who have been the victims 
of them. I have already pointed out that Youtsey's 
situation in life, his relation to the Taylor administra- 
tion, his whereabouts immediately following the firing 
of the fatal shot, his conduct before it, his conduct 
after it, added to the fact that he had never testified 
and was free to state anything that might fit the theory 



HOWARD'S THIRD TRIAL 249 

and further the purposes of the prosecution, made him 
a most dangerous witness, and his evidence a probable 
menace to the Hves of many innocent persons. It is 
not, therefore, to be wondered at that the court-room 
was packed to suffocation when Youtsey, the long- 
desired and much-heralded witness, took the witness- 
stand for the prosecution. 

He did not wear prison stripes as had been expected, 
but appeared in a somber gray suit which fitted him 
like feathers on a wild duck. He is a decided brunette, 
with small, weasel-like eyes. A ghastly paleness, 
always so terrible in a swarthy face, overspread his 
features as he took the witness-stand. He looked 
more like a dead man than a living one. This death- 
like appearance continued all through the first day of 
his examination, and during the whole of the time he 
was on the witness-stand he had a maniacal expression. 

Youtsey is the only witness ever introduced by the 
prosecution in any of the Goebel trials, who professed 
to know anything about a plot to kill Senator Goebel 
or to be able to give any of its details. He told at 
length of his various efforts to kill Senator Goebel, of 
his trying to secure the service of one Doctor W. R. 
Johnson, and their efforts to commit the dastardly 
deed. He also told of ordering smokeless powder 
cartridges and steel bullets for the purpose, and of 
the departure of Johnson without committing the 
crime. He related in detail two efforts to secure the 
services of a negro by the name of Hockersmith and 
of the collapse of that scheme. He said that he 
had but one talk with me concerning the killing of 
Senator Goebel, but in that one conversation I agreed 
to leave my private office open for the purpose of 



250 . MY OWN STORY 

affording a negro an ambush, wherefrom he might 
kill Goebel. He said that, after the negro scheme 
had failed, because he could not get into my private 
office, he wrote a letter at Taylor's instance to 
James B. Howard, of Clay County, to come and kill 
Mr. Goebel. Neither Taylor nor Youtsey nor I knew 
Howard. He said that Howard came on the morn- 
ing of the thirtieth of January, a few moments before 
Goebel was killed, and that after introducing themselves 
to each other, he went into my private office through the 
open door leading from the reception-room, admitting 
Howard through the private hallway door, and that in 
a few moments thereafter Howard fired the fatal shot. 

Youtsey did not connect me even remotely with the 
alleged Taylor-Howard- Youtsey conspiracy to kill Mr. 
Goebel. On cross-examination he said that he did not 
testify in his own case, but had had, during its pro- 
gress, a pretended fit, because he believed it " the best 
thing to do under the circumstances." He said that 
after his incarceration in the penitentiary he began to 
talk to those in authority to find out the next thing 
to do. He talked to Mr. Lillard, the warden, to Rob- 
ert B. Franklin, the Commonwealth's attorney, to Judge 
James E. Cantrill, before whom he was tried, to Mr. 
Thomas C. Campbell, and even sent for and had a talk 
with Governor Beckham, as a " feeler." He said that 
he told Governor Beckham he wanted to make a 
'^ full confession." He said the governor advised 
him to tell all he knew, but did not promise him a par- 
don, saying that he could not compromise his office by 
making a promise, hut did not say he would not grant 
him a pardon. 

Youtsey went on to say that when he was arrested 



HOWARD'S THIRD TRIAL 251 

and thrown into jail, he sent for Mr. Campbell and 
Mr. Goebel and made a statement to them regarding the 
assassination of Senator Goebel, and that he told them 
then hozv he admitted James Hozvard, Berry Howard, 
Dick Combs and Frank Cecil into my private office a 
few moments before the fatal shot was fired. Youtsey 
admitted that he had lied to Mr. Goebel and Mr. 
Campbell upon that occasion, that he had allowed Dick 
Combs and Berry Howard to be indicted as principals 
in the Goebel murder, upon his false statement, and 
that he had been confined in jail with Dick Combs 
many months, knowing that he was an innocent man, 
yet had made no effort to have him discharged from 
wrongful imprisonment. He admitted further that 
he was in the state prison when Berry Howard was put 
upon trial for his life, but never revealed to any mem- 
ber of the prosecution the fact that Berry Howard was 
innocent of that with which he had charged him. 

Youtsey testified that in his first interview with Mr. 
Campbell and Arthur Goebel, he told them he never 
discussed with me the killing of Senator Goebel from 
my office. He said : " / had selected the secretary of 
state's office as the place from which the shot could be 
most safely -fired. This was agreed upon. I did not 
talk to Caleb Powers about this.'' It will be seen that 
in the first statement he ever made concerning the mur- 
der of Senator Goebel, he positively says he never 
talked to me concerning it. He said the door lead- 
ing into the reception-room from my private office 
was open on^the morning of the tragedy, but he did not 
state that I had agreed to leave that door open on that 
morning for the purpose of having Senator Goebel 
killed from that office, or for any other purpose. And 



252 MY OWN STORY 

the defense in my third trial proved by seven witnesses 

— one of whom was a leading star for the prosecution 

— that the door to my private office was locked, which 
Youtsey said was open, and through which he said he 
entered for the purpose of admitting Howard to do the 
murder. Youtsey admitted that, a few days before the 
killing of Goebel, he tried to get from Walter R. Day, 
treasurer of state, three hundred dollars to settle the 
contest. He admitted that he had a talk with Culton 
after the tragedy, and had asked Culton if he (Culton) 
could place him (Youtsey) as being in the lobby of the 
Legislature at the time of the firing of the fatal shot. 

Then Youtsey was confronted with the signed state- 
ment he made for Mr. Kinkead before he was arrested, 
in which he said that he knew nothing incriminating 
against any one accused of the Goebel murder and with 
the affidavits he had made exonerating Howard and my- 
self. He was forced then to confess that he had not 
only told falsehoods, but had sworn to them before he 
became a witness. Howard, when placed upon the 
witness-stand, denied under oath Youtsey's statements. 
I did the same. Taylor under oath by deposition did 
the same. When the testimony in the Howard case 
was in and the arguments completed, the jury returned 
a verdict sentencing Howard to life imprisonment. 
No sooner had the verdict in Howard's case been ren- 
dered than his counsel filed a motion for a new trial, 
which Judge Cantrill overruled. 



CHAPTER XXXVill 

MY THIRD TRIAL 

Death of my father — I am not permitted to attend Tiis funeral 
— Judge Robbins supplants Judge Cantrill — Another 
packed jury — Youtsey and Cecil testify against me 

While Howard's third trial was just over, mine was 
rapidly approaching. Howard's case was carried to 
the court of appeals, and after it was affirmed there, 
was carried to the supreme court of the United States, 
and has not yet been passed upon by that tribunal. 
On the first day of the May term of the Scott circuit 
court, my attorney again moved that Judge Cantrill 
vacate the bench and order the clerk to certify to the 
governor that a vacancy existed. The Court refused 
to vacate the bench, although the court of appeals had 
decided that he must vacate it. A writ of prohibition 
was applied for and the court of appeals again decided 
that Cantrill should vacate the bench, which he did. 
But it was August before my trial took place. In 
the meantime, Governor Beckham appointed Judge 
Joseph E. Robbins, of Mayfield, to act as special judge 
in my case. Sometime previous to this, a Democratic 
Legislature, at the instance of the prosecution, had 
passed a law, giving the governor the power to appoint 
a special judge, when for any reason the regular judge 
could not preside, provided the attorneys in any case 
failed to agree upon one. The majority of the attor- 

253 



254 MY OWN STORY 

neys at the Georgetown bar is Democratic, but is just 
and impartial, and I am sure that the members of the 
bar there would have elected an impartial judge to try 
me had not the old law been changed. This new law 
was enacted for the purpose of closing against me 
every possible avenue to a fair and impartial judge — 
a just and honest trial. It was meant to close the door 
of hope in my face. The lawyers for the prosecution 
were not willing to leave the selection of a special judge 
to chance. The power to appoint was given to one, 
of all other men, most interested in fastening the stig- 
ma of the Goebel murder upon leading Republicans — 
the last man who could 'be expected to get away from 
his bias, personal interest and partizanship and do right. 
The death of Mr. Goebel made Governor Beckham the 
foremost Democrat of the state — made him governor. 
Judge Robbins had presided over the Democratic con- 
vention at which Beckham was nominated to succeed 
himself as governor. This was the same Judge Rob- 
bins whom Governor Beckham had appointed as a 
special judge to preside at my trial. 

And while preparations were being made for it, a 
telegram reached me at the Georgetown jail, announc- 
ing the death of my father. He had been in poor 
health for ten years, had visited me but once since 
my incarceration, and had never been physically able 
to attend my trials. Nevertheless, his death was sud- 
den. I immediately telegraphed Judge Robbins, the 
special judge in my case, and had my attorneys tele- 
phone and telegraph him, offering to file a bond of 
fifty thousand dollars if he would permit me to go to 
my mother in her grief and attend my father's funeral. 
Judge Robbins refused to grant my request. 



MY THIRD TRIAL 255 

It IS best to draw the veil of silence over the sad 
hours that followed. Those that have lost a loving 
and watchful father can realize my feelings. He 
was sixty-seven years old at the time of his death. 
The shock of my arrest and the grief caused by my 
two convictions for an atrocious crime, of which I am 
innocent, " shattered his nerves and fastened upon his 
stooping form a load of grief, which was never lifted 
until his trembling, weakening years let it fall at the 
tomb." 

On his way to Georgetown, to preside at my third 
trial, which had been set for August third, Judge 
Robbins came by the city of Frankfort, and, after a 
long conference with Governor Beckham, decided to re- 
sign his position as a member of the Democratic cam- 
paign committee for the approaching election. On 
reaching Georgetown, he stopped at the Wellington 
Hotel, the rendezvous of the lawyers and partizans of 
the prosecution. He was soon imbued with and par- 
took of the spirit of the Goebelite partizans and lawyers 
for the prosecution. He had held several offices at 
the hands of the Democrats of his district. He had 
indorsed the Music Hall convention ; voted for Goebel ; 
approved the contests ; and denounced the Republicans 
as murderers and assassins. 

When my case was called for trial he made an 
order directing the sheriff to summon two hundred 
men from Bourbon County for the purpose of doing 
jury-service in my case. My attorneys asked him 
to admonish the sheriff to summon an equal number 
of each political party. This request was refused. 
My counsel then asked him that the sheriff be in- 
structed to summon the talesmen as he came to them, 



256 MY OWN STORY 

regardless of political affiliation. This he also re- 
fused. The sheriff and his deputies, accompanied by 
Democratic officers of Bourbon County, then pro- 
ceeded to summon for jury service in my case one 
hundred and seventy-six men from the county of 
Bourbon, which in 1896 gave McKinley a majority 
of four hundred votes over Bryan, and Taylor a 
comfortable majority over Goebel, in 1899. Out of 
the one hundred and seventy-six men summoned, one 
hundred and seventy-three were partizan Goebel Dem- 
ocrats! This result was secured by deliberately fail- 
ing to summon the Republicans, who in many instances 
lived along the same roads, streets and pikes where 
lived their Democratic neighbors who were summoned. 
The defense knew from this that it would again be im- 
possible to get a jury not embittered by prejudice and 
hatred. 

After the jury had been finally selected, the defense 
entered a motion supported by affidavits, asking that 
the entire jury be dismissed on account of bias and 
hostility toward the defendant and on account of the 
manner in which it had been summoned and selected. 
The court overruled the motion, and the case went to 
trial. Eleven of the jurors were partizan Goebel 
Democrats, one, a Mr. Hanley, had once been a Re- 
publican. Out of the six hundred or more summoned 
for jury service in my three trials, he was the only 
Republican not rejected by the prosecution. And, 
after he had been accepted in my case, it developed that 
he had not voted with the Republicans since the assas- 
sination of Mr. Goebel, of whom he was a great 
admirer, and, at the time he was trying me for 
my life, had hanging on the walls of his room 



MY THIRD TRIAL 257 

a framed picture of the dead senator. No Republican 
ever sat on any of the other juries that have tried other 
men charged with the Goebel murder. There have 
been more than seventeen hundred men summoned for 
jury service in the trials of the Goebel cases. Mr. 
Hanley, the juror in my third trial, occupies the unique 
position of being the only Republican ever permitted 
by the prosecution to sit on any of the juries. 

A number of new witnesses appeared both for the 
prosecution and the defense. Among them was Henry 
E. Youtsey and F. M. Cecil for the prosecution. To 
their testimony attention has already been called. My 
testimony was the same in substance, and along the 
same lines as given at my two former trials. I denied 
in toto the damaging statements attributed to me by 
Broughton, Cecil, and Youtsey. Some of the new wit- 
nesses for the defense were very important. 

I have referred very briefly to the testimony in this 
and other trials, for the reason that nearly all the 
material testimony in the case, both upon the side of the 
prosecution and the defense, is referred to and quoted in 
my argument to the jury, which appears in full in the 
Appendix. 

After the testimony in the case was in, and the jury 
had visited the scene of the tragedy and been instruct- 
ed by the court, the arguments began. Judge J. R. 
Morton led off in a brief and forceful argument for the 
defense and was followed by Samuel M. Wilson, also 
for the defense, in one of the ablest arguments ever 
delivered in any of the Goebel trials. Mr. Wilson was 
followed by Colonel J. K. Hendrick in one of his 
characteristic speeches, and he, in turn, was followed 
by Major A. T. Wood, who made some telling points 



258 MY OWN STORY 

for the defense. Mr. Campbell, for the prosecution, 
spoke in his usual semi-political style, closing his argu- 
ment at the afternoon session of the court. On Thurs- 
day, August twenty-seventh, I had prepared to address 
the jury in my own behalf, and when the court con- 
vened at seven-thirty that night, it was my turn to be 
heard. Though I was represented by able counsel, and 
though it is unusual for one accused of crime to make 
an argument before the jury, still I felt that in consid- 
eration of the circumstances surrounding my case, I 
was justified in doing so. I felt that I might as well 
try to bombard a fog as try to win over the packed 
jury that was hearing my case. At the same time I had 
been so long branded as a mountain cut-throat and 
assassin, and the facts in my case had been so long sup- 
pressed and so long misunderstood, that I was deter- 
mined, at last, to be heard in my own behalf, and, so 
far as I could, to bring the reasons of my persecution 
into the white light of publicity. 



CHAPTER XXXVIII 

CONDEMNED 

My closing argument in behalf of myself — Crowds listen to 
my review of the case, in which I arraign the prosecution 
— Jury, however, finds me guilty, attaches the death pen- 
alty, and I am sentenced to be hanged — Appeal to the 
higher court 

The fact that it was my intention to deliver an argu- 
ment in my own behalf had reached the ears of the 
vigilant newspaper correspondents, and, consequently, 
was well-known to the public. The result, one writer 
has expressed : " Long before the convening hour, 
the spacious court-room was packed to suffocation 
with men and women representing every calling in 
life. The matron and maid, beauty, wealth, and pov- 
erty had congregated to witness a scene, the like of 
which had rarely occurred in the history of all the past. 

" At half-past seven o'clock in the evening, court 
was called to order. The judge directed that the argu- 
ment proceed. Mr. Powers emerged from the jury- 
room, with head erect, dauntless and brave, as he 
pushed his way through the mighty throng and began 
his speech. Composed and calm, in a low tone of 
voice, amid the pall and silence of that vast audience 
that hung with bated breath upon his every word, the 
young prisoner and orator proceeded, apparently un- 
conscious of the gravity of the occasion. He spoke 

259 



26o MY OWN STORY 

until nine-thirty, when court adjourned until the fol- 
lowing day. The interest aroused by Mr. Powers' 
first appearance before the jury was increased between 
the adjournment at night and the convening of court 
the next morning. Long before the hour for the con- 
vening of court, the court-room was jammed with 
sweltering humanity — all bent upon hearing every 
word the defendant might say in conclusion of that 
splendid speech begun the previous evening. Mr. 
Powers resumed his argument at nine o'clock, speaking 
until noon. Beginning again at one-thirty, he con- 
cluded at three-thirty, having spoken nearly seven 
hours in all." 

I began* by apologizing to the jury for taxing its 
patience with another argument. I called attention to 
the silence I had preserved despite two adverse ver- 
dicts, discussed in detail the political aspect of my 
prosecution. I said, in substance, that my guilt or in- 
nocence since my arrest had been made issues upon 
which men had sought political nomination and offices. 
I asserted that juries had been packed against me, and 
called attention to the fact that the present jury, hear- 
ing my case, was composed of eleven Democrats and 
one Republican. 

'' It has been three years since I was thrown into 
jail," I said, " charged with a cowardly assassination. 
During that time the Legislature had hung over my 
head a reward fund of one hundred thousand dollars to 
convict me. Is it any wonder that many fingers have 
been trying to get to that fund ? Is it any wonder that 
so many have confessed for the sake of immunity? 
Is it any wonder that the man Cecil should confess? 

* For my address in full see Appendix C. 




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H 

Q 

5 



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5 

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O 

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CONDEMNED 261 

Is it any wonder that the weak Youtsey should have 
confessed after two years in prison ? 

" It is all the outgrowth of the inducements offered. 
My prosecution, or persecution, has been political. 
It can not be expected that the officers of the Com- 
monwealth will now turn back or confess that they 
have prosecuted me wrongfully. They can not do so 
after their treatment of me for the past three years. 
The prosecution is in the confession business, but it is 
not making confessions itself. In two other trials the 
Commonwealth officers prosecuted me to conviction, 
and they are now trying to get you to convict me 
again." 

Continuing, I argued that if I were acquitted and it 
was afterward proved that I was guilty, Kentucky 
would be held in contempt for a lax administration of 
its laws ; but that if I were convicted and it later devel- 
oped that I was innocent, the state would be the more 
keenly criticized and the more deeply disgraced. 

'' It does not matter," I said, " if I brought a thou- 
sand or ten thousand mountain men to Frankfort; it 
does not matter about the use of the military; it has 
not been shown in this case that I had anything to do 
with the man who murdered Senator Goebel ; I had 
nothing to do with the military, and was not a military 
officer. The Court tells you in his instructions that you 
can not believe one conspirator though he is corrobo- 
rated by another, unless they are both corroborated 
by some one else." 

I took up the testimony and declared that no one 
with any degree of intelligence whatever would have 
permitted the use of his house or his private office as a 
place from which the shot of an assassin could be fired. 



262 MY OWN STORY 

I enumerated the names of the persons arrested and 
charged with this crime, but not indicted, and declared 
that it was not the purpose of the Commonwealth ever 
to try John Davis, Green Golden, Wharton Golden, W. 
H. Culton, Dick Combs, or Holland Whittaker. I 
referred to the acquittal of Berry Howard and Garnett 
Ripley and to the fact that the Commonwealth had ad- 
mitted to bail all of the alleged conspirators, except 
Howard and myself, who were still in jail, and Taylor 
and Finley, who had fled. I pointed out also that all 
those people named in the indictment with me were 
now at liberty except myself, and that the officers of the 
Commonwealth were insisting on the trial of no one 
but myself. 

" If there is a bit of evidence," I said, " in this case 
to show that I knew, or had ever seen, Jim Howard 
before the day on which Senator Goebel was shot, I will 
admit that I am guilty and agree to a verdict of convic- 
tion. The only man who connects me in any manner 
with Howard is Cecil, who told you that I said to him 
a man was to come down from the mountains the 
next day. Youtsey told you that I was to stay out 
of my office that day, but he did not tell you that I had 
been told by either himself or Taylor that Jim Howard 
or anybody else was to do the shooting. I didn't know 
Jim Howard; I didn't know Holland Whittaker; I 
didn't know * Tallow Dick ' Combs ; T didn't know 
Berry Howard. That disposes of four of the five 
men whom the Commonwealth says I secured to do 
the shooting. That leaves only Henry Youtsey that I 
could have secured. I will leave it to the testimony in 
this case to decide whether I was in any conspiracy to 
secure, or if I did secure Youtsey to do the shooting. 



CONDEMNED ^ 263 

This testimony will show that I never met Henry 
Youtsey before January first, 1900. It will also show 
that he never had a word with either me or my brother 
relative to shooting Goebel from my office or elsewhere 
on the thirtieth of January, 1900." 

Speaking of my speech the Courier- Journal said : 
" In conclusion Powers pictured for the jury his life in 
prison for nearly four years. He declared that he is 
not guilty of any part in the crime charged, and that 
all the jurors and witnesses that could be called would 
never change his innocence to guilt. He declared 
that he sought no mercy, but only justice at the hands 
of the jury, and then made a strong plea for mercy in 
his case, and for his acquittal, picturing his aged 
mother in her mountain home awaiting the verdict of 
the jury." 

At the conclusion of my argument, Mr. Franklin, at- 
torney for the Commonwealth, made the closing ad- 
dress in behalf of the state. He delivered an eloquent 
speech and the jury retired immediately to consider 
its verdict. 

The next day it found the following : 

" We, the jury, agree and find the defendant guilty 
and fix his punishment at death." 

While I knew that the jury had been chosen to con- 
vict, and that a failure to do so would brand the entire 
prosecution as a gigantic farce, still I was shocked be- 
yond the power of pen to tell at the appalling infamy 
of such a verdict. 

The court, upon the reading of the finding, com- 
manded me to stand up, and, after calling attention to 
the paragraphs of the indictment and citing the fact 
that I had been convicted, he asked me in the custom- 



264 MY OWN STORY 

ary form whether I had any reason to give why sen- 
tence should not be passed upon me. To this I re- 
pHed : 

" I am not guilty, Judge." 

" If that statement be true," responded the court, 
" it is a terrible calamity for you and for the state." 

He then directed that I be returned to the George- 
town jail and there confined until the twenty-fifth of 
November, and then be taken out and '' hanged by the 
neck until dead." He gave my attorneys until the 
eighth day of October to prepare and file their bill of 
exceptions. This was done and, later, the transcript 
was prepared and filed with the clerk of the court of 
appeals. Thus I was granted a respite until my case 
could be heard and decided by the higher court. 



CHAPTER XXXIX 

WHERE MY CASE RESTS 

Tragic end of T. C. Campbell and peaceful death of former 
Governor Brown — Court of appeals for the third time 
declares my conviction illegal and unfair and grants me a 
new trial — I am awaiting the return of reason and justice 

With some of its witnesses now self-confessed per- 
jurers, the prosecution was destined to receive even a 
more severe blow. This came in the death of Thomas 
C. Campbell. At the conclusion of my third trial, he 
was in a most wretched condition of health, and, in 
truth, was so ill that he was compelled to rernain 
seated during the greater portion of the time occupied 
in delivering his argument to the jury. He looked then 
as though his days on earth were numbered. 

When the information was conveyed to him that the 
jury had brought in a verdict of guilty against me and 
had sentenced me to be hanged, he sent the following 
telegram to his assistant counsel : " Glory be to God 
on high." He little knew, perhaps, when he penned 
these words, what short space of time remained to him 
in which to rejoice over his.. victory and the injustice 
done his fellow man. -^i^'--^ ^ 

He immediately repaired to New York City, and, 
joined by his wife and son, started on a cruise to 
the Bahama Islands in the hope of recovering his 
health. The yacht on which Mr. Campbell sailed, the 

265 



266 MY OWN STORY 

Roamer, was wrecked on a coral reef at Rum City. 
Its passengers escaped with their Hves, being carried 
ashore. The beach where they effected a landing 
swarmed with pirates and thieves. Among these Mr. 
Campbell and his family fell. The attorney was too 
ill to assist himself and, near death, he lay for several 
days in a little hut built of mud and oyster shells, sub- 
sisting on nuts and quenching his feverish thirst with 
stagnant water. 

By the time the rescue of the passengers could be 
accomplished, Mr. Campbell was, indeed, in a most 
critical condition. Aneurism of the heart, from which 
he suffered, had been so aggravated by the exposure 
and hardships he had endured, that when he was car- 
ried aboard the liner, Orizaba, he had but few hours 
to live. He reached New York in a dying condition 
and, the day following his arrival, his soul passed from 
earth. Thus ended a most remarkable career of a 
most remarkable man. And, I might say, in conclu- 
sion, " Tread lightly on the ashes of the dead." 

It was only a few weeks later that the state of Ken- 
tucky was called upon to mourn the loss of one of its 
greatest sons — John Young Brown. Tn his death, I 
suffered an irreparable loss. He was my senior coun- 
sel in my first trial, and was as true and devoted to my 
interests as he was careful, cautious and painstaking 
as my attorney. So much was said of him in obituary 
notices at the time of his death, so much was writ- 
ten and spoken of his brilliant career as an orator, 
lawyer, congressman and governor ; of the many noble 
traits of his character and of his generosity and integ- 
rity, that there is little need for me to eulogize him 
here. In my mind, however, there will remain for 



WHERE MY CASE RESTS 2'^'] 

ever the picture of this man as he stood in the court- 
room, pleading my cause, pleading for right, for justice 
and for my life in words of such impassioned eloquence 
that even the hostile court, the hostile spectators, the 
hostile jury, heard him in breathless silence, held spell- 
bound by the powerful argument he delivered. His 
zeal in my cause was unflagging. Knowing him as I 
knew him, I am inclined to think there will be ample 
pardon for my saying that he was almost as great a 
loss to me as he was to his family and to his intimate 
friends. 

The fact that ex-Governor Brown and Mr. Campbell 
figured so conspicuously in the Goebel conspiracy 
trials, and the coincidence of their deaths occurring in 
such close proximity to each other, naturally suggest a 
comparison of the manner in which the final summons 
came to each. Mr. Campbell was called first. Seek- 
ing health, he found death. Possessed of sufficient 
worldly means to command every comfort and luxury, 
his last days were spent in the midst of the most abject 
poverty, in the center of conditions from which even 
the meanest of his kind would shrink. He lay dying in 
so destitute a state that even a cup of pure water could 
not be obtained with which to quench his thirst, 

Ex-Governor Brown, on the other hand, died in his 
home, surrounded by a devoted and sorrowing group 
of those nearest and dearest to him. Anxious friends 
throughout the length and breadth of his native state 
waited with sorrow the news of his passing. All that 
could be done to prolong his life was done, and when, 
in the end, he found that death could not be averted, he 
waited calmly and bravely until the end wrapped him 
in the everlasting unconsciousness of the tomb. 



268 MY OWN STORY 

Verily does it seem that the closing days of these two 
lives exemplified most emphatically the old adage, 
prophetic in its solemnity : " As a man lives, so shall 
he die." 

It is not impertinent to refer to my own fate. I 
was a man upon whom the sentence of death had been 
passed. The sensibilities of one in my position — 
horrible and awful as it is — are by no means 
numbed by the terribleness of it, but, on the contrary, 
are most keenly alive to every pang so awful a fate 
forces one to suffer. One in such a condition is alert 
to every incident or event that in any way affects his 
interests. It can be readily imagined, therefore, that I 
learned with inexpressible delight that the state of 
Kentucky and the nation at large had received the ver- 
dict found against me with a feeling of revulsion and 
horror. 

In truth, within a comparatively short time, my 
countrymen were beginning to turn the lime-light of 
investigation and publicity on Kentucky jury trials, 
Kentucky courts of law and Kentucky methods of 
wreaking vengeance on political opponents. 

Mr. Samuel Hopkins Adams, in McClnre's Maga- 
zine, fearlessly exposed the hideous conspiracy against 
my life. Ex-Governor Frank S. Black, of New York, 
Ex-Governor Richard Yates, of Illinois, Judge H. Clay 
Howard and United States District Attorney R. D. Hill, 
both of Kentucky, generously volunteered their services, 
as counsel, in my further fight. They were gratefully 
accepted. Harfper's Weekly, Collier's, and other peri- 
odicals raised their influential voices in my behalf, and 
commented in no uncertain terms on the mockery of 
the law under which I had been convicted and sentenced 
to death. 



WHERE MY CASE RESTS • 269 

In the meanwhile, my case had been argued before 
the appellate court, but no decision was forthcoming 
until December, 1904, when, for the third time, the 
majority of the court decided that I had been illegally 
and wrongfully convicted, and determined that I was 
entitled to a new trial and a fair hearing ; but as soon 
as one of the Republican appellate judge's term expired, 
January first, 1905, and Judge James E. Cantrill, of 
whom much has been said, took the oath of office to 
fill his place, the prosecution asked for a rehearing of 
my case. Their petition was overruled March 25, 

It will be remembered in connection with the de- 
cision granting me a new trial that, on the former ap- 
peals, my convictions had been set aside by the Repub- 
lican members of the higher court bench, while the 
Democratic judges continued to vote against me. This 
time, however, two newly elected Democratic judges 
concurred with the two Republican members of the 
bench in granting me a new trial. Three Democratic 
judges handed down, as on previous occasions, a dis- 
senting opinion. They said, in part : " The record 
shows that the appellant was (if not the chief one) 
in the conspiracy which resulted in the assassination 
of William Goebel." One Democratic judge, how- 
ever, handed down a separate opinion. It was Judge 
Henry S. Barker, and in most forcible terms he 
compared my case with that of Dreyfus, saying: 
" Those conversant with current history have seen a 
highly civilized and generous people, under the stress 
of racial passion, condemn without proof a soldier 
charged with a political crime, and sentence him with- 
out mercy to a punishment worse than death ; and, 
when the storm had spent its force, that judgment was 



270 MY OWN STORY 

annulled, the victim was released and all the world, 
to-day, knows his innocence. I do not believe that any 
man charged with a political offense, or with an of- 
fense originating in a political contest, who is tried by 
a jury composed of his political opponents, can have a 
fair and impartial trial within the meaning of the law. 
. The administration of even-handed justice 
has no more insidious enemy than political prejudice ; 
it enters unseen and unsuspected into the human mind 
and undermines the judgment. . . . Neither 
purity of heart nor exaltation of character offers an 
antidote for this deadly poison. The pages of history 
are eloquent with the evils of this passion." 

Thus are the points of my case disputed, even among 
Democratic judges, thus is my innocence or guilt 
argued, while, during the contention, my health is be- 
ing undermined and my life ebbs away. I await 
the return of the reign of reason and justice and, 
while I wait, my friends remain as true and loyal to 
me as my enemies continue to be bitter and unjust. 
Friends have given unstintingly of both their time and 
means; from time to time, they have formed leagues 
and committees for the purpose of raising funds for 
my defense — aye, even for my personal comfort. 
They have upheld my cause and stoutly maintained my 
innocence, even when business reverses came and social 
ostracism followed as a result. 

To all my friends — faithful friends in all walks of 
life, high and low — let me extend my warmest and 
deepest gratitude. To my enemies, let me say : " If 
you could but understand, your censure would dis- 
solve itself into pity and your tears would blot out 
what you once thought to be a record of my villainy." 



CHAPTER XU 

CONCLUSION 

My story written tinder difficulties — I am surrounded by 
criminals of all degrees — Noise and impertinent curiosity, 
instead of privacy — Five years in prison and still no final 
determination of my case — An awakening of the people 
at hand 

To those who may have expected, in perusing these 
pages, to find a work of some little brilliancy and color, 
I must address a prayer for indulgence while I ex- 
plain under what conditions they were written. The 
disadvantages that surround me seem to be heaped 
mountain-high. Even as I write the closing lines of 
my story in the beginning of this good year, 1905, the 
room in which I am accorded little more than cot-space 
is filled with thirteen other prisoners — murderers, . 
thieves, burglars, pickpockets, confidence-men, men in 
the throes of delirium tremens, and others only a short 
time convalescent. Some of these are now clumping 
back and forth across the worn wooden floor in that 
ceaseless prison plod — the exercise that prevents the 
man in confinement from going insane. 

Behind a thin partition, an old inmate is quarreling 
with a recent arrival over the latter's disinclination to 
submit to certain of the jail rules and regulations. 
Seated on a dilapidated old bench, one of the prisoners 
is relating to his interested companions deeds of start- 

271 



272 MY OWN STORY 

ling adventure and narrow escapes from arrest for 
crimes he has committed, puffing the while the noxious 
and ever-present cigarette. Another finds an audience 
before whom he pours out the story of his jealousy and 
hatred for a fellow prisoner. The flap, flap, flap of 
playing-cards, together with the sound of a guttural 
voice, " I played high," and a piping one, " I played 
low," added to the discordant notes of a ceaseless man- 
dolin, are wafted over to the lone corner of the room 
where I sit beneath a grim, heavily barred prison win- 
dow. The interruptions caused by the visits of curious 
sightseers have been endless. I am not now confined 
in the same room with negroes, as had been the case 
frequently since my incarceration, but the noisy bab- 
ble and yowling of a score or more of them wells 
up from the corridors below. There is no privacy; 
in five years, I have scarcely been able to turn in my 
bed, cleanse my body, strip for exercise, talk to my 
friends or even eat my meals, without every movement 
being closely scrutinized by a horde of evil-visaged, 
foul-talking, ill-bred criminals. 

It has been under such circumstances, surrounded by 
such obstacles, that I have been forced to live and 
write this narrative. I beg of the reader, therefore, to 
be to its faults very blind and to its virtues very kind. 

Five years of my life have thus passed since my 
wrists first felt the pressure of manacles and I began 
to view the world and life through the bars of a prison 
window. Technically these five years have brought 
me no nearer to the veiled finale of this tragedy of 
prosecution than I was when first I broke prison bread. 
I am still at the starting point — in jail awaiting trial. 
It is as though I had been accorded no hearing in the 




One of my guards 



John R. Pflanz, 
my kind-hearted jailer 



Prisoners drawing- rations 
Writing the closing lines of my book 
Prisoners at breakfast Telling stories 

SCENES IN MY QUARTERS IX THE LOUISVILLE JAIL, FEBRUARY, i 



905 



CONCLUSION 273 

past, had never been convicted, and had never been 
sentenced. Nevertheless, I feel that I have not lost 
these years. The half-decade that has passed has 
served me not wholly with evil alone, for, in this 
time, hatred and passion have in a great measure sub- 
sided and many friends have been drawn to the sup- 
port of my cause. But, looked at in even its most 
favorable light, five years of my life have been stolen 
from me — five years, counting by the months of the 
calendar, but how many, figured by the suffering, 
the humiliation, the agony, the desperation I have en- 
dured, only the Eternal Judge of all judges knows. 

Yet, withal, I have not lost faith in the great heart 
of the great common people. Many of them have suf- 
fered. Many of them, Democrats as well as Repub- 
licans, sympathize with me in my hours of adversi- 
ty. Many of them understand. And it is not wholly 
their fault, if, in many of the rural districts of Ken- 
tucky, the Democrats continue to hold a strong preju- 
dice against me and are over-ready to convict me when 
they serve in the capacity of jurors hearing my case. 
False ideas have been carefully, systematically and 
maliciously instilled into their minds and hearts by the 
frenzy of a partizan press that has lost its sense of 
right and justice to the individual in its passionate 
support of its party. And, although my persecution 
has been a condition precedent to the promotion of any 
Democrat to office and the true test of modern Ken- 
tucky Democracy, still time can alter even this as it 
has already altered much. Even now an awakening 
is at hand. Many of those who at first condemned me 
unheard, and hated me without cause, are beginning 
to realize that they have been made the victims of 



274 MY OWN STORY 

a gigantic political conspiracy, having for its end the 
life of an innocent man. They no longer are willing to 
continue as the blind instruments of party passion, 
party malice and party necessity. 

Whether the voice of fair play and common justice 
will become sufficiently loud in the days to come to ring 
out through all Kentucky like an alarm bell in the 
night and thus rescue me at last from the whirlpool of 
political prejudice, hatred and oppression, I do not 
know. I am confronted with the realization of the 
hard fact that, to the Goebelite office-holders and office- 
seekers in Kentucky, my conviction is still a pecuniary 
and a political necessity. The one-hundred-thousand- 
dollar corruption fund is still at the disposal of the 
prosecution. Five thousand dollars of it is still offered 
for my conviction, right or wrong, the majority of 
the members of the appellate court have held that they 
are estopped by section 281 of the Criminal Code of 
Kentucky from granting me relief from a ^' packed 
jury." My acquittal at this late hour would convince 
the world that my prosecution had been unspeakably 
infamous. The prosecution knows this. Many of the 
trained perjurers, who have testified against me on 
former trials, will, in all probability, be on hand to try 
to swear my life away again. But, notwithstanding all 
this, from the gloom of a prison cell, I send this mes- 
sage to the world: 

I am still an optimist ; my pulse beats high with hope. 
The consciousness of innocence and my faith in the 
wisdom of the world; in the old adages that right 
must triumph and murder must out — these are the 
supports that have borne me up under the crushing 
weight of the most bloodthirsty cabal of modern times. 



CONCLUSION '275 

Dreyfus? Mrs. Maybrick? They had a chance! 

I do not know what the fecund womb of time has 
in store for me. None can thrust aside the veil that 
shields his view from the mysteries of the future. We 
are drifting, sailless, oarless, across the uncharted seas. 
But, whatever may be the shore to which my bark may 
bear me, I shall have, as I have now, the consolation of 
knowing that I battled throughout to the very best of 
my ability, to the limits of my power, against the odds 
that opposed me and the storms that broke upon me. 

I know that a tremendous force resides in innocence 
and that Truth and Justice, sometimes slowly, but al- 
ways surely, are marching on to victory. They may 
often tread with leaden heels and fail to arrive in time 
to prevent the havoc wrought in the abuse of their 
name, but they rarely fail finally. But whatever fate 
befalls me, I shall have in the end, as I have now, the 
consolation of knowing that some day my name, at 
least, will be vindicated. 



APPENDICES 



APPENDIX A 

ANDERSON'S AFFIDAVIT 



iss. 



State of Kentucky 
County of Jefferson 

I, Finley B. Anderson, on oath, state that I was a witness 
in the Scott circuit court in July, 1900, for the Commonwealth 
in the case of the Commonwealth of Kentucky, versus Caleb 
Powers, and both on my direct examination and cross-exam- 
ination, while a witness upon the stand in said case, I made 
statements that were false ; and now, in order, as far as possi- 
ble, to make amends for the injustice and the injury that such 
false statements resulted in to Caleb Powers, whom I hon- 
estly and conscientiously believe to be innocent of the charges 
of complicity in the assassination of William Goebel, and 
moved hereto, solely by such desire, do voluntarily, by my own 
seeking, make this affidavit. 

Early in the spring of 1900 I was engaged as telegraph 
operator on the Knoxville division of the Southern Railway, 
and went from Knoxville to Barboursville about May tenth. 
There I met Joe Owens, who stated to me that Mr. Thomas 
C. Campbell wished to see me in Cincinnati, in relation to 
becoming a witness against Caleb Powers, who was then 
under arrest. Owens also told me that if I would go to 
Cincinnati and see Campbell, I would be given employment 
there. Owens told me it would not be well for me to be 
seen going with him to Cincinnati, and by arrangement, I 
met him at Corbin, Kentucky. Thence we went to Cincin- 
nati together, Owens paying my way. The statement made 
by me on the Powers trial, that I used a pass on this trip, 
was untrue. When we reached Cincinnati, which was about 
the tenth of May, we went to the Palace Hotel and inquired 

279 



28o ANDERSON'S AFFIDAVIT 

as to the whereabouts of the storehouse of Lowery and Goebel, 
and being directed we went to that store and asked for Mr. 
Arthur Goebel. We were informed by a clerk at the store 
that Mr. Goebel was not in; and he asked us what we 
wanted. Upon being informed that it was in relation to the 
Powers trial, he directed us to Colonel Campbell's office. 
Mr. Campbell immediately began asking me questions about 
the presence of Caleb Powers at the Anderson House, at 
Barboursville, just prior to January twenty-fifth, and asked me 
if Powers had said why he was going to take to Frankfort the 
mountain crowd of men. I answered that^he had, and that 
they were going to intimidate the Legislature. Mr. Campbell 
then suggested to me that Powers had also said at that time 
that, if necessary, he would kill enough Democrats to have 
a Republican majority. I told Campbell at that time that 
Powers had not made such a statement. In my testimony 
at Georgetown, I did state it to be a fact that Powers had 
said that if necessary the mountain men would kill enough 
Democrats to have a Republican majority, but such a state- 
ment upon the witness-stand was untrue. Mr. Campbell then 
told me that Owens had told him that I had said that Caleb 
Powers, at the Hotel in Barboursville, prior to January twen- 
ty-fifth, had used these words, speaking of William Goebel : 
" If we can not get him killed, and if it is necessary, I will 
kill him myself." I said to Mr. Campbell that I had never 
told any one any such thing; and that Powers had not made 
such a statement to me, or any statement resembling it in 
any way. Campbell and Owens insisted that I had made 
Such a statement ; and I afterward, upon Campbell's suggestion, 
sat down and wrote out a statement in which I included 
the foregoing statement of Powers', which was untrue in 
every particular; and upon the trial of Caleb Powers, I 
swore to it as a fact, when in truth it was not a fact. I 
remained in Cincinnati after this conversation with Mr. 
Campbell; and some time after that, Mr. Arthur Goebel, 
in his store, up stairs on the fourth floor, where I had 
gone at his request, asked me if Powers had not, in my 
presence, in Barboursville, in January, said to me in substance, 
these words, referring to William Goebel: "They say he 



ANDERSON'S AFFIDAVIT 281 

wears a coat of mail ; but it won't do him any good," or 
words similar to that. I told Arthur Goebel that Powers had 
never said anything of that sort, to the best of my knowledge. 
He told me to think and see if I could not remember it. I 
could not remember such a remark, and I know that Powers 
never made such a remark, or anything resembling it, in 
my presence; but being urged by Arthur Goebel, I finally 
concluded to state that he did make such a statement, and 
so swore upon the trial, which testimony was false. Before 
making any statement to Campbell, Wharton Golden told me 
to make it as strong as possible, as they (referring to Camp- 
bell and Golden) would take care of me and protect me. 
I desire now to say that I had but one conversation with 
Caleb Powers ; and that was in relation to my going to Frank- 
fort with the men on the twenty-fifth of January, and at no 
place was the name of William Goebel mentioned or referred 
to in any way or in any manner. Upon the occasion of the 
first conversation with Campbell, or the day after, I received 
from him ten dollars cash ; and since that conversation, I have 
received from him, before and after I was a witness at George- 
town in the Power's case, various sums of money; and I 
have, since such conversations with Campbell and Arthur 
Goebel, received from Arthur Goebel various sums aggre- 
gating about three hundred dollars, and upon one occasion 
ten dollars from Justus Goebel. The last sum I received 
was on Tuesday, October twenty-third, 1900, which was five 
dollars given to me by Mr. Campbell at his office in Cin- 
cinnati. Just prior to giving me this five dollars, Campbell 
had telephoned to Arthur Goebel to come to his office, which 
Goebel did. And when he arrived at Campbell's office, he 
went into a private room with Campbell, and Campbell came 
out and handed me five dollars. I believe that my testimony 
in the trial of Caleb Powers aided in his conviction ; and I am 
unwilling longer to suffer in silence by reason of the thought 
that the falsity of my statements have aided in the conviction 
of Caleb Powers. I desire further to say that F. Wharton 
Golden has received from Arthur Goebel, in my presence, 
various sums of money at various times, and that said Golden 
is now living near Cincinnati, at a place named Madeira, under 



282 ANDERSON'S AFFIDAVIT 

the assumed name of John McDonald ; and while said Golden 
was living at Erlanger, he was under the assumed name of 
Clark. 

(Signed) Finley B. Anderson. 

Subscribed and sworn to before me by Finley B. Anderson, 
this thirtieth day of October, 1900. 

My commission expires January seventeenth, 1904. 

Clarence E. Walker. 



APPENDIX B 

ROBERT NOAKES' AFFIDAVIT 



State of Illinois, 
Vermilion County 



[ ss. 



Robert Noakcs, being first duly sworn on his oath, deposes 
and says that he is the identical Robert Noakes who testi- 
fied in the case of the Commonwealth of Kentucky against 
Caleb Powers, tried before Judge Cantrill, in the circuit 
court in Georgetown, Scott County, Kentucky. 

Affiant further deposes and says as follows : I took an 
active part in the campaign between Taylor and Goebel. I 
was at heart a very substantial Republican, and after the elec- 
tion felt that we had carried the state ; and I was in favor of 
holding it, if we had to resort to any means. I took an active 
part in transporting men to Frankfort during the time the 
election commissioners were in session, and up until the 
inauguration of Governor Taylor and the minor officers. 
After inauguration, when the contest was filed, I was an 
open advocate of civil war, and devoted most of my time 
talking the same and urging the people of my section to take 
up arms and march to Frankfort. I was very aggressive 
and made many unthoughted expressions. I raised a body 
of mountain boys and went to Frankfort with them on the 
morning of the twenty-fifth of January, 1900. I stayed 
in Frankfort during the day of the twenty-fifth of January. 
The day was disagreeable and my men were expecting more 
of me than I was able to furnish them, in the way of bedding, 
board, etc. My wife and family were urging me to quit the 
fight before I got into trouble, as I had already made a 
considerable number of enemies. On the evening of the 
twenty-fifth, I went to Charles Finley and told him that I 

283 



284 ROBERT NOAKES' AFFIDAVIT 

had decided to take the men back home and asked him to 
please make arrangements for a train. A short time later, 
Finley came to me and told me that the train would be 
ready about eight o'clock. I took my men and returned 
to the mountains, with the exception of four hundred men, 
who remained in Frankfort. I went with the men as far 
as Artemus, and got off there. I stayed at Artemus on the 
twenty-sixth, and left that evening for Norton, Virginia, 
arriving there on the morning of the twenty-seventh and 
taking up my duties as conductor on the Louisville and Nash- 
ville Railroad. I heard nothing more from Frankfort until 
the evening of January thirtieth. I then received a message 
from Colonel Roger William that Goebel had been shot, and 
to hold my company in readiness to move to Frankfort. I 
had promised my wife that I would not take any further 
hand in the matter, and I did not go to Frankfort, but sent 
a company in charge of the second lieutenant. 

About the time of Wharton Golden's confession, several 
persons'* informed me that I would be arrested before the 
investigation was over, and one or two Louisville papers 
published the statement that the detectives had secured suffi- 
cient evidence to warrant my arrest. I saw the way affairs 
were going; knew the amount of money behind the prosecu- 
tion; and knew the bad character of Wharton Golden, be- 
lieving firmly that he would not hesitate to do anything. I 
believed that they were as liable to convict me as any other 
man in the state. 

Attorney J. C. Maynor, of Corbin, Kentucky, had been my 
attorney and legal adviser for many years, and I regarded 
him as an honorable man. I went to him and asked him 
about the case. Maynor told me that I would probably be 
arrested, and that they had considerable evidence against me ; 
although I knew that I was innocent of any conspiracy to 
kill Goebel, and as I have said before, I knew that with 
such men as Wharton Golden and Tom C. Campbell directing 
the prosecution, they were as liable to convict me as any 
other man. Maynor promised to let me know at any time 
I was in danger of being arrested. 

About May fourteenth, I was in Corbin attending to some 



ROBERT NOAKES' AFFIDAVIT 285 

legal business ; and while there, I spent a good part of my 
time in Maynor's office. He apparently was very uneasy, 
and advised me to get my affairs in shape to leave the country 
on short notice. I did as he advised me, and returned to 
my temporary home in Norton, Virginia. I did not see Maynor 
again until June fourteenth. In the meantime, I had removed 
from Norton to Big Stone Gap, Virginia. Maynor came there 
about June fourteenth and had a talk with me. He said that 
he had been to the Democratic convention at Louisville; that 
he had met Justus Goebel ; and that my case looked rather 
dark, but that if I would go strictly according to his advice 
and not take the advice of any one else in the world, he 
would pull me out. I promised to do so, still believing that 
he was an honorable attorney and had only the interest of his 
client at heart. A few days later, he told me that he had 
made arrangements to meet Justus Goebel at Knoxville. I 
first agreed to go to Knoxville, but then told him to make 
it Bristol, and finally decided to have the meeting at Big 
Stone Gap ; accordingly Maynor telephoned me to meet 
Justus Goebel at the Taylor House at Big Stone Gap about 
the twentieth of June. I went to the Taylor House ; when I 
arrived, I met Maynor in the office. He informed me that 
the gentleman we wished to see was in to supper; and that 
wc would just step back into his (Maynor's) room. I went 
to his room with Maynor, and was there introduced to a 
gentleman who called himself Mr. Kleinmeyer. The gentle- 
man and I exchanged a few words, and then Maynor left the 
room; as I presumed, to tell Justus Goebel that I was there. 
The gentleman (Mr. Kleinmeyer) and myself immediately 
entered into conversation; we discussed the mineral prospects 
of the surrounding country. After we had talked for some 
little while he remarked that the country was too damned 
near to Kentucky to ever amount to anything; I asked him 
why. He said there were too many murderers in Kentucky; 
that civilized people would not come there. His remarks 
slightly offended me. I said that I supposed he referred to 
the killing of Senator Goebel, and he said he did, I told 
him that I regretted that Goebel had been killed in the 
manner that he had ; but told him that no man could trample 



286 ROBERT NOAKES' AFFIDAVIT 

on the rights of the people of Kentucky and expect to live. 
He then said that he supposed I was a friend of Finley and 
Caleb Poufers, I told him that I was. He said, " Then, of 
course, you believe that they are innocent and ought to be 
acquitted." I told him that I did not believe either of those 
men knew any more about who shot Goebel than I did, and I 
was sure that I knew nothing. He asked me a few more 
questions about Powers and Finley in an insinuating way. 
I very emphatically informed him that I had advocated their 
cause until the present and was still willing to take up arms 
and fight for them. At this stage of the conversation, J. C. 
Maynor entered the room with a sheepish, hang-dog ex- 
pression on his face, and informed me that I had been talking 
to the man that I to-day believe to be the most notorious 
scoundrel in the United States — Colonel Tom C. Camp- 
bell. I immediately saw that my attorney was playing a 
dastardly devil game. Campbell told me that outside of what 
I had said to him, he could easily hang me in the state of 
Kentucky; thai men were crowding him who were anxious 
to give the evidence against me, I believed what Campbell 
said, and told him that I had no money with which to fight 
the case; and that now I would take the shortest way out of 
it, or words to that effect. Campbell told me that if I would 
do just as he and Maynor said, they would get me out of it 
without money. From that moment on, I was completely in 
the hands of J. C. Maynor and Tom Campbell. 

They arranged to have me arrested; and I was arrested 
on the tzventy-eighth day of June by the chief of police of 
Big Stone Gap, and turned over to Constable H. D. Harrod, 
of Frankfort, Kentucky, who had requisition papers. He 
took me to Frankfort and put me in jail on July third. I 
remained in jail three days. My attorney, Maynor, called 
on me at the jail, and I told him that he must moke some 
arrangements to get me out immediately. He did so, and I 
was released in the custody of Constable Harrod, and was 
kept under his guard until after the case of Caleb Powers 
was called for trial. I do not know who paid my guard, or 
my board at Harrod' s home; but I know that I did not. I 
gave Harrod ten or 'twenty dollars that Maynor gave me to 



ROBERT NOAKES' AFFIDAVIT 2%j 

give to him. I only paid Mayiior about twenty dollars for 
his services. He was at Frankfort and Georgetown with me 
the entire time. Tom Campbell informed me that Arthur 
Gocbel paid Maynor one thousand dollars. 

The first conversation that I had with Tom Campbell after 
I met him at Big Stone Gap was in his room at the Welling- 
ton Hotel, in Georgetown. He sent for me to come to his 
room. He then informed me that now they zvere all going 
to help me get out of the trouble ; and that I zvould be out 
in a few days. He then told me that he was ready to take 
my statement. The nervous strain that I had gone through 
zvith had left me almost a total wreck; and I was at all times 
furnished zvith stimulants and kept under the influence 
of intoxicating liquors, and was frequently on the verge of 
delirium tremens. I had never drunk to excess until after 
I zuas arrested, and from the effects of the zvhisky that I had 
been leaking and my troubles, I sometimes realized that I zuas 
not right mentally. In this condition I made a statement 
in Tom Campbell's room. My lawyer, J. C. Maynor, was 
in the hotel, and knew that I was making this statement 
in Tom Campbell's room; hut never came to the room. 
Campbell afterward informed me that I had sworn to the 
statement before a notary public; but I do not remember 
of having sworn to it, and I do not believe that I did swear 
to it. Campbell insisted that I did and proved it by a man 
that he said was the notary public; this man's name I do 
not know. 

At the time I went on the witness-stand at Georgetown 
and swore to the facts contained in this statement, I was 
still under tlie influence of liquor; was almost a nervous 
v.'reck, and under all circumstances, was not a responsible 
zvitness. 

After the trial and conviction of Caleb Powers, I went 
to Frankfort with J. C. Maynor to prepare a bond for my 
appearance to answer any indictment that might be found 
against me by the Franklin County grand jury at its next 
term. We fixed up some kind of a bond, and I and J. C. 
Maynor signed it. We returned to Georgetown from Frank- 
fort, and I was anxious to leave Georgetown and go to 



288 ROBERT NOAKES' AFFIDAVIT 

Crab Orchard, Ky., where my mother resides. This Arthur 
Goebel, Tom Campbell, and J. C. Maynor objected to; but 
insisted that I should go to Madeira, Ohio, with a man 
named Jack Malloy; Wharton Golden and his wife were 
stopping at this place; and Finley B. Anderson had just 
left there. (In fact, it was a place where Goebel and Camp- 
bell had been farming their star-witnesses). Anderson had 
stopped there some four or five weeks, and Wharton Golden 
had gone there shortly after he had made his confession of 
facts, which he acknowledged to me he did not know, and 
which were false. When I arrived at Madeira, I was almost 
totally without means and immediately began to look for 
work. I went to Arthur Goebel's place on Elm Street in 
Cincinnati, and asked him to assist me in securing a position; 
we were then in his private oMce ; he took me hack into the 
rear of his store, and we had quite a long conversation. 
Goebel told me that he did not want me to return to work, 
but that he wanted me to return to Madeira, Ohio, and rest, 
and think up what I could on the men that were next to he 
tried. I told him that I scarcely knew Jim Howard and 
Henry E. Youtsey. He told me it was not so much what we 
knew as what we would swear; he then took -fifteen dollars 
out of his pocket and gave it to me, slapped me on the shoul- 
der and told me to brace up and mot weaken, and that every- 
thing would be all right; that there was a lot of that one 
hundred thousand dollars left yet. I told him that I wanted 
nothing further to do with the cases, and that I was a ruined 
man and only wanted a chance to make an honest living. 
He told me that I was nervous; to go down and get a drink 
and return to Madeira and wait a few days, and he would 
fix me all right. I returned to Madeira and remained a few 
days, and again returned to Cincinnati, in company with 
Whartoxi Golden. Golden told me that he was out of money, 
and would have to see Goebel and procure some means. 
Golden left me on Fifth Street, in Cincinnati, and I saw him 
go into Goebel's place of business. In a short while he 
returxied and displayed some money. I think there were fifty 
dollars. He told me that he had also fixed up a check and 
sent it to the Wellington Hotel, at Georgetown, seventy-nine 



ROBERT NOAKES' AFFIDAVIT 289 

dollars, to pay his board while there in the Caleb Powers 
trial. He boasted to me that Goehel told him that he could 
get any amount of money he wanted. He also informed 
me that Tom Campbell had returned to town and wanted 
to see me ; but he said before we went to Campbell's office 
we would go and get dinner, and something to drink. He 
started to the Manhattan restaurant for dinner, and on the 
way took several drinks. Golden always took lemon soda 
and urged me to take whisky. By the time we reached the 
Manhattan, I was again under the influence of liquor. We 
ate dinner and started to Campbell's office. On the way 
Golden told me that he knew a saloon that handled the finest 
brandy in Ohio ; and that we would go by and sample it. 
We went to the saloon ; Golden called for brandy for me, and 
took lemon soda again for himself. This was simply a con- 
tinuation of the drinking spell that I had been on since my 
arrest. We went to Campbell's office and found him there ; 
we had a short conversation. Golden and Campbell left the 
private office and went into a hallway and left me lying on 
a sofa. They were gone for some time, and when they re- 
turned they were accompanied by Arthur Goebel ; they all 
three came into the office, and laughed and joked with me 
about being tired. Goehel had a volume of the evidence that 
was taken in Caleb Powers' case at Georgetown. He gave it 
to Golden, and told him to take it and read it, so he would 
not make any mistakes in the next trial. I afterzvard found 
this book, containing the evidence of Wharton Golden, which 
he (Golden) spent considerable time reading while at Ma- 
deira. On this day, Campbell asked me if I were not short 
of funds, and gave me twenty dollars ; I returned to Madeira 
and remained there a few days ; got soberer than I had been 
since I was arrested ; became disgusted with myself and deter- 
mined to leave Ohio and find employment. I went from 
Madeira to Cincinnati; from there to Indianapolis; thence 
to Crawfordsville, Indiana. / remained in Crawfordsville 
a few days, and then returned to Frankfort to answer any 
indictment that might be found against me. While I was 
there, the Howard case was being tried. Campbell sent for 
me to come to his room at the Capital Hotel. I went to his 



290 ROBERT NOAKES' AFFIDAVIT 

room; he was alone; he lodged the door and sat dozun close 
to me, and said: ''Bob, me have not sufficient evidence to 
convict Jim Howard; and I don't know where in the hell we 
are going to get it, unless you can help us out." I told 
him I could not do anything, as I scarcely knew Jim How- 
ard. He told me that I could help him in another way. I 
asked him how. He then told me what John L. Jones was 
going to swear to; and what I afterwards learned he swore, 
and said: "Now, Bob, we fixed Jones for three hundred 
dollars; and we want Dave Chadwell to swear that Jim How- 
ard came to him shortly after the mou/ntain militia arrived 
at Frankfort and told Chadwell that he {Jim Howard) had 
fired the shot that killed Senator Goebel from the window 
of the secretary of state's office; and that Henry E. Yout- 
sey. Berry Howard, and Dick Combs were in the secretary of 
state's office at the time the shot was fired; and that Howard 
said: "By God, we want you mountain men to stay with us 
and see that we are not arrested." I told Campbell that I did 
not think this was good policy; that if these men were not 
guilty, why should he or anyone else want to punish them. 
He laid his hand on my shoulder, and looked at me and said: 
"Bob, the Grand Jury is still in session. I am employed in 
these cases to hang somebody, and I could yet hang you, but 
J have no inclination to do so; that is, if you do the right 
thing by me. I am going to break Jim Howard's neck, and 
I need the evidence I spoke to you about to do it with. I 
have five hundred dollars here to pay for that evidence. We 
got John L. Jones for three hundred dollars, and if you work 
it right, you can secure his friends for the same amount, 
and you will have two hundred dollars left to your credit. 
I realized that Campbell was a cold-blooded murderer, and 
determined not to lend any assistance to his schemes, but 
promised him that I would approach Chadwell and see what 
could be done. I kept promising Campbell each day that I 
would see Chadwell, and he kept urging me to do so. Finally, 
I invited Chadwell to go fishing with me on the Kentucky 
River, and let Campbell know that we were going, and 
promised him that I would on that day fix things with Chad- 
well. We went fishing, but I never said anything to Chad- 



ROBERT NOAKES' AFFIDAVIT 291 

well about that matter. I that night met Campbell at the 
Capital Hotel. I told him that I approached Chadwell on 
that subject, and found that he was not a safe man; and that 
he had better try to make some other arrangements. Camp- 
bell was in very high spirits, and said that it did not make 
so much difference after all; that he had fixed things for less 
money. Campbell then told me that he wanted me to cir- 
culate a report around town that Charles Finley had told me 
at Corbin that Jim Howard had offered to kill Goebel for 
two thousand dollars. I told him that Finley had not told 
me this; he said, "Damn the difference" ; that he wanted to 
create a public impression; and besides, '* I have a statement 
in my office in Cincinnati, made and signed by you to that 
effect." I told him that I did not remember to have made 
such a statement, but he insisted that I had, and said that he 
would show me the statement the next time I was in his 
office. I accordingly told several people that Finley had made 
the above statements, and a few days later, this statement 
was published in the Courier-Journal. I remained In Frank- 
fort until the verdict was rendered in the Howard case, con- 
demning, as I firmly believe, an innocent man to death. A 
few minutes after the verdict was rendered, I met Tom 
Campbell, and he told me to go to the foreman of the jury] 
and congratulate him, and tell him that I believed they had 
convicted the right man. I went to this man, and in a sar- 
castic way told him I believed he had convicted the right man ; 
and that I hoped that his conscience did not hurt him. I 
then went to the Capital Hotel. Campbell again asked me 
where I was when Howard was convicted; I told him that 
I was in the jail with Green Golden. He said: "Good; I 
had given out a statement that Howard told you if he never 
met you on this earth, he hoped he would meet you in hell ; " 
and that if any one asked me if Howard made this statement, 
for me to say he did. I left Campbell shortly, and went out 
on the street, and several people asked me if Howard had 
made this statement to me. I, coward that I was, said that 
he did. Howard never made this statement to me ; and it was 
but the imagination of Tom Campbell's devilish brain that 
concocted such a story. 



292 ROBERT NOAKES' AFFIDAVIT 

I hope when the friends of Howard read this statement 
from me, they will not censure me too hard ; but will remem- 
ber that I was completely in the hands of the enemy. It has 
always been my intention to right these wrongs as far as 
possible. 

After the excitement and worry attexiding the trial of James 
Howard, at Frankfort, I was again almost a mental wreck, 
and more fit to be the inmate at a lunatic asylum than to be 
running at large in the country. On the day that the verdict 
was rendered in the Howard case I had a long talk with 
Campbell in his room at the Capital Hotel, in which he tried 
to persuade me to enter into a plan to betray Charles Finley, 
and get him into Kentucky. I left Campbell about dark 
with a promise to meet him again that night. And not know- 
ing why I did it, I walked directly from the hotel to the 
depot, caught a C. and O. train, and wexit into Louisville; 
there I hurried across the city, caught an L. and N. train, and 
regardless of the danger, started to the mountains to see 
my wife, whom I had not seen for four months. I left the 
mountains on the day of my arrival, and proceeded to Evans- 
ville, Indiana, where I remained until the Youtsey trial 
was called at Georgetown. I then returned to Georgetown as 
a witness in this case. As soon as I arrived at Georgetown, 
Wharton Golden came after me to go to Campbell's room. 
I went to Campbell's room and had a long talk with him. 
He told me that we had the hardest fight yet to make ; and 
that he expected to hang Henry Youtsey; but he said Yout- 
sey had more money behind him, " and we have a damned 
sight harder job than we have ever had." I asked him 
where his strongest testimony was against Youtsey. He said 
that Wharton Golden and Bill Culton and John Ricketts 
were all strong witnesses against him ; but he did not believe 
that they were sufficient to do what they wanted done. He 
told me to look around among the mountain men that would 
be down there, and see if I could not find some one that 
could remember some damaging evidence against Youtsey, 
and wanted to make some easy money. I told him that I 
did not think I could secure ariy man of that pattern. I had 
had about all of Tom Campbell's bulldozing that I expected 



ROBERT NOAKES' AFFIDAVIT 293 

to take, and had made up my mind to stop the farce trial 
if it was possible. I spoke my mind pretty plainly to Camp- 
bell that night, and told him that if he made any attempt to 
injure me in any way, I would certainly kill him. Campbell 
then became very docile and persuasive. He ordered some 
whisky from down stairs, and persuaded me to take a drink. 
I had not been drinking anything for a few days, I took the 
drink, and he talked with me for quite a while and tried to 
impress me that he had only my interest at heart. The night 
after Youtsey broke down during his trial, Campbell sent 
for me to come to his room. He seemed to be greatly wor- 
ried, and talked to me for a short while, and then said: 
" Bob, that damned fool's breaking down has put our case 
in a bad shape; we are going on with the trial in spite of 
hell ; and I am afraid that if we do not have more evidence 
the people will not stand for his conviction in his present 
condition. Now," he said, " we may as well call an ax an ax ; 
you are a pretty shrewd fellow, and have lost considerable 
money in these cases from start to finish. / have eight hun- 
dred dollars here which you can see is good money. It is 
yours if you will swear that Henry Youtsey told you in the 
presence of Charles Finley that Goebel had to die in the next 
five days if he had to kill him himself." He said that I was to 
state that this conversation took place late on the evening of 
the twenty-fifth of January ; and that if they asked me on the 
stand why I did not state this in the Powers trial, I was to 
answer th^t I was trying to shield Charles Finley. I let 
Campbell complete his proposal, and then told him that I 
thought he was the damnedest rascal that it had ever been 
my misfortune to meet; and that I was going to Craw- 
ford, Youtsey's half-brother and attorney, and tell him the 
whole damned affair. Campbell asked me if I was going 
entirely crazy; he said that he still held the winning cards; 
that he could prove by a dozen of his men that I was not in 
his room at all. Knowing his men as I do, I do not doubt that 
he could. However, Campbell seemed to be afraid of me after 
this, and immediately commenced trying to persuade me to 
again commence drinking. I took several drinks that night, 
continued to drink during the next day, and by the next 



294 ROBERT NOAKES' AFFIDAVIT 

night had become very disagreeable and exceedingly anxious 
to kill some one. I procured a pistol, and went to the room 
of Wharton Golden, with the intention of killing him, be- 
lieving then, as I do now, that he, and he alone, is responsible 
for the trouble in Kentucky. I found W. H. Culton in 
Golden's room. I handled the pistol so recklessly that soon 
Culton left; Golden became suspicious, and soon followed 
him. He went to Campbell's room, as I afterwards learned, 
and they sent some one to take me to my boarding-house. I 
went to my boarding-house and slept until late the next day; 
I then went down to the Wellington Hotel, and some one 
told me that Campbell was looking for me. I went to his 
room, and he urged me to go to Cincinnati and stay there 
until he came. I was trying to secure a position on the Big 
Four Railroad out of Cincinnati, and, as Campbell said he 
had some influence with those people, I waited a few days 
for him to come there. He returned a few days after the 
verdict was rendered in the Youtsey trial. I met Mr. Camp- 
bell in his office in Cincinnati. He was very much worked 
up over the speech that Colonel Nelson made, and seemed 
to think that Nelson had given him the worst of it. He said 
that if it had not been for Nelson, they would have hung 
Youtsey and it would have been more money to him. He was 
very bitter toward Nelson. Early in the afternoon of the 
same day, I went out to see the Big Four people, but failed 
to secure the position that I was looking for. I found Camp- 
bell in his office, busily engaged in getting up aru article for 
the newspapers in answer to Colonel Nelson's speech. He 
seemed to be in worse humor than in the morning. I 
informed him that I failed to get the position that I was 
expecting at the Big Four, and that I guessed I would leave 
Cincinnati. He told me that he did not want me to leave 
Cincinnati, but to stay there at his expense ; and they would 
secure any kind of position that I wanted in a few days. I 
worked a few days in Cincinnati for the Stone Lake Ice Com- 
pany and left the city. Since then my wanderings and conduct 
in no way had any bearing on these cases. 



APPENDIX C 

MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY DURING MY THIRD 
TRIAL. DELIVERED AT GEORGETOWN, KEN- 
TUCKY, AUGUST TWENTY-SEVENTH 
AND TWENTY-EIGHTH, 1903. 

May it please the court, and you also, gentlemen of the 
jury: I know that you must be tired listening to argument, 
but if my strength and this intense heat will permit it, I 
desire to say a few words in my own behalf and concerning 
whose life and whose liberty, you have taken upon yourselves 
a solemn obligation to deal. In doing so, I exercise one of the 
privileges which our lawmakers, in their wisdom, have vouch- 
safed to every person accused of a crime within the confines 
of our Commonwealth. I would not, however, take advantage 
of this provision of our law, but for the fact, that for over 
three long years I have been forced to lie in the jails of this 
state, classed as a criminal, branded a murderer and de- 
nounced an assassin, 

I have borne in silence, and with what fortitude I could, 
these grave charges, together with two adverse verdicts, at 
the hands of my fellow countrymen. I now feel that I owe 
it to myself to be heard. Over three years ago, I was torn 
from a high official position to which I had been elevated by 
the people of this great Commonwealth; thrown in jail and 
charged with the commission of an atrocious and cowardly 
crime. The Legislature of our state, in the excitement of 
the hour, ajid actuated by motives of hatred and revenge, 
appropriated one hundred thousand dollars of the people's 
money with which to prosecute me, twenty-five thousand dol- 
lars of which sum was set aside for the investigation of clues ; 
in other words, that amount was to be paid to detectives to 
furnish the needed proof. In addition to that, a large sum 

295 



296 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

was offered and hung up as a tempting morsel for my con- 
viction, right or wrong. 

With such inducements as these, and under all circum- 
stances and surroundings in this case, is it any wonder that 
Weavers have wandered from the distant peaks of Colorado 
to get their hands into that filthy sum? Is it any won- 
der that perjured scoundrels of the brand of Noakes and 
Anderson found their way to the witness-stand during my 
trials, and swore to prepared and infamous falsehoods against 
me ? Is it any wonder that weak and base humanity of the 
character of Golden and Culton began to swear and continued 
to swear for immunity ? 

Is it any wonder that the assassin-hearted Cecil, after 
having wandered this weary world around, from Kentucky 
to Kansas, from Kansas to California, from California to 
Kansas and from Kansas back to Kentucky, should finally 
find his way to the home of the prosecuting attorney in this 
case; there be given a comfortable night's lodging — par 
nohile fratrum; from there be taken before the grand jury 
the following morning to tell such a story as would continue 
to him his liberty under the forms of law ? Is it any wonder 
that the weak and villainous Youtsey, after having spent more 
than two years in the penitentiary of this state, should emerge 
from that living tomb, when he sees, or thinks he sees, through 
his testimony a ready chariot to the green and inviting fields 
of freedom? We should not be surprised at such happenings; 
they are the natural outgrowth of such conditions and in- 
ducements. 

Since the very day of my arrest, my conviction in this case 
has been both a pecuniary and a political necessity. It is more 
so to-day than it has ever been. The prosecution can not now 
well afford to admit that they have hounded to the earth for 
three years an innocent man. They can not now well afford to 
admit that they did me wrong, when I was deprived of my 
office and thrown in jail. These would be bitter words for 
them to be forced to utter : " We have charged this young 
man with murder wrongfully ; we have torn him from an office 
of trust and honor; we have lodged him in jail; we have 
carried him from one bastile of this state to another, in chains 



PLEAS OF THE PROSECUTION 297 

and irons ; we have thrown him behind gnawing bars in prison 
life; we have forced him to stay in the same steel cages With 
worthless negroes and to have them for his daily companions ; 
we have inflamed the public mind against him through a 
servile press, with hideous stories of an awful conspiracy 
in which we believed him to be implicated. We have tried 
him in our courts by his enemies, politically, and we have 
convicted him ; but in all that we have been mistaken, in all 
that we have done wrong." It is true that the prosecution 
is in the confession business, but they are not going to make 
such a confession as that; nor will they permit you to bring 
in a verdict of "not guilty" in this case, if it is within their 
power to prevent it. 

We have heard a great deal said during the progress of 
this case, and especially by Colonel Hendrick, about the prose- 
cution having no interest in the conviction of an innocent man. 
He said that the Commonwealth could have no sort of in- 
terest in my prosecution, unless I was guilty of that with 
which I am charged. And for the purpose of adding plausi- 
bility to their argument, they have said that Arthur Goebel 
would not, for his right arm, lend aid or encouragement to 
the prosecution in this case unless he knew beyond all doubt, 
founded upon reason, that I am guilty of that with which 
I am charged ; and Mr. Franklin has said upon former trials 
of this case, and I presume he will say upon this one, that 
he is a sworn officer of the law, gentlemen of the jury; that 
no filthy lucre of any kind lingers in his pocket to swerve 
him from his duty one way or the other; that he is doing 
his duty to his country, his conscience, and to his God. I 
say, men, we should not be surprised at such pleas and 
speeches on the part of the prosecution. This is not the 
first time in the history of these cases that the life of an 
innocent man has been asked by these gentlemen. 

In the trial of poor old Berry Howard, over at Frankfort, 
Mr. Franklin called him a monstrous, murderous, frozen- 
hearted assassin, and asked that his life go out upon the scaf- 
fold. Mr. Franklin was then doing his alleged official duty ; 
and he is prosecuting me now in his alleged official capacity. 
Mr. Franklin was mistaken about the guilt of poor old Berry 



298 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

Howard because the jury said in that case: '* We, the jury, 
agree and find the defendant not guilty." Mr. Arthur Goebel 
was present upon that occasion and was lending aid and 
encouragement to the prosecution. He, no doubt, believed 
Berry Howard was guilty of the murder of his brother. There 
is no doubt he believed it. He was relying upon the word of 
Henry E. Youtsey. Youtsey had told him on the very day 
of his arrest that he had let Howard into the private office 
of the secretary of state with Dick Combs, Jim Howard and 
others. Mr. Goebel believed Henry E. Youtsey and upon 
that belief in Youtsey's story, he had an innocent man 
dragged from the mountains of Kentucky, and put upon trial 
for his life. 

And in the trial of Captain Garnett D. Ripley, the papers 
had it that Mr. Franklin made one of the most powerful 
efforts of his life; that he spoke for four long hours and 
asked the jury to take the young man's life from him. 

Mr. Arthur Goebel was present aiding in that prosecution. 
In the belief of the guilt of Captain Ripley Mr. Franklin 
was mistaken and Mr. Arthur Goebel was mistaken, because 
the jury in the case of Captain Garnett D. Ripley said: " We, 
the jury, agree and find the defendant not guilty." And they 
sent him to his home. So this is not the first time, men, in 
the history of these cases, that the prosecution has been mis- 
taken and Mr. Goebel has been mistaken in his pursuit of a 
man he believed to be implicated in the murder of his brother. 
The truth is, men, that the prosecution in this case is almost 
crazed for a verdict of guilty. They feel that a verdict of 
acquittal at your hands would break the backbone of their 
alleged conspiracy; and for this to be done at this particular 
time, with Taylor and Finley yet at large and yet to be tried, 
and with the coming state campaign on hand, would be a 
serious blow to the hopes and the purposes of the prosecution. 
They keenly appreciate the necessity for a conviction, and in 
order to accomplish it, men, they have stopped at hardly any- 
thing in this case ; but, upon the contrary, they have stooped 
to a great many things. They have attacked my integrity 
in the open ; they have trampled under foot my liberty ; they 
have tried to grind my honor into atoms, and they have even 



PARTIZAN POLITICAL JURY 299 

gone to the extent of attacking the integrity of you gentle- 
men in the back and by stealth, and at the same time pro- 
fessing friendship. 

Leaving out of view the fact that it is always unpleasant 
to sit in judgment upon such sacred rights of one of your 
fellow men, your position in this case from another view- 
point is by no means an enviable one. Truth to speak, men, 
they afe relying more upon your political affiliations for a 
verdict of guilty than they are upon the law and the testimony, 
and the oath you have taken to give me a fair trial. I think 
I can make that clear to you. 

The county of Bourbon, in 1896, gave McKinley a majority 
of over four hundred votes ; and in the campaign of 1899 it 
gave Taylor a majority. Taking the McKinley vote as a 
basis, had there been no distinction made on account of poli- 
tics, there ought to have been serving on this jury about 
seven Republicans and five Democrats. And yet in the face 
of this fact, and divers others like unto it, the prosecution 
maintains that politics has nothing to do with the trial 
of this case. Mr. Campbell and Mr. Hendrick have gone 
to the extent of saying that whatever politics have been 
injected into this case, have been injected into it by the 
defendant. Injected into it by the defendant! What interest, 
pray tell me, has the defendant in injecting politics into this 
case? If there is one thing more than another in which the 
defense is interested in, it is, in keeping politics out of this 
case. If there is one thing more than another in which the 
defense is interested in, it is, that this case be tried in the 
spirit of truth and inquiry, and not in the spirit of political 
hatred and revenge. What could it profit the defense, pray 
tell me, to draw the bow across the strings of political passion 
when eleven of those strings are Democratic strings and, 
possibly one, a Republican string? Politics has been injected 
into this case, men, not by the defendant, but by the prosecu- 
tion ; and I think I can make that clear to you, gentlemen. 

The statutes of our state provide that it is the duty of the 
jury commissioners to place within the jury- wheel the names 
of sensible, sober, discreet house-keepers of the county, over 
twenty-one years of age, and residents in different portions 



300 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

of it. Tliese are the qualifications and the only qualifications 
that jurors are required to possess; and when the sheriff is 
sent out over the country to select men to do jury service in 
this, or any other case, these are the qualifications and the only 
qualifications that the jurors are required to possess. There is 
no provision in our law which says that Democrats only shall 
do jury service. There is no provision in our law which 
says that Republicans shall not do jury service. The laws 
of our country do not take into consideration the politics of 
the juror. That being true, men, there must be some reason 
why there are eleven Democrats doing jury service in this 
case and possibly one Republican. There must be some reason 
why there was not a single Republican on the jury that tried 
me the last time I had a trial, although one-half of that jury 
came from the good county of Bourbon, There must be some 
reason why there was not a single Republican on either one 
of the juries that tried Jim Howard; not one on the jury 
that tried Berry Howard; not one on the jury that tried 
Captain Ripley; not one on the jury that tried Youtsey. 

It will not do to say that Democrats always happen to be 
selected to do jury service in these cases. It has happened 
thus in too many cases and too often. It will not do to say 
that the jury commissioners always ''happen" to place within 
the jury- wheel the names of Democrats and never happen to 
place within the jury- wheel the names of Republicans. It 
will not do to say that if the jury commissioners do " happen " 
to place within the jury-wheel the names of a few Republi- 
cans ; and the names of a few Republicans " happen " to be 
drawn from the jury-wheel, or the sheriff in his perambula- 
tions over the country " happens " to summon a few Republi- 
cans to do jury service that the prosecution almost Invariably 
"happens'* to reject those particular Republicans from jury 
service. It will not do to say that out of one hundred and 
seventy-six men summoned in this case, at this trial, from a 
county that gave McKinley over four hundred majority in 
1896, that one hundred and seventy-two of these men thus 
summoned " happened " to be regular Democrats and but four 
happened to be Republicans, and none " happened'* t©»be 
Independent Democrats. It won't do to say that Mr. Franklin 



ONLY DEMOCRATS WANTED 301 

"'' happened " to exhaust one of his peremptory challenges in 
this case, upon one Charles W. Penn, a Republican, when 
this jury-box was first filled, and when there were eleven 
Democrats subject to peremptory challenge. Have you ever 
asked yourselves the question since this trial began : " What 
is it that peculiarly fits me for jury service that unfits my 
Republican neighbor? What are the qualifications that I 
possess that make me a competent juror in the eyes of the 
prosecution that my Republican neighbor does not possess, 
and make him incompetent ? " These are serious questions, 
gentlemen. What is it that a man must possess to make 
him a competent juror in this case or in these cases that is 
neither prescribed by the laws nor the statutes of our coun- 
try? The Republicans possess all the statutory qualifications. 
In the eyes of the law they would be competent jurymen. 
Then what is it that a man must possess to make a competent 
juror in this case that is neither prescribed by the laws or 
statutes of our states? What can it be? Have you ever 
asked yourselves the question, Mr. Ingalls, what can it be? 
I will tell you. You must in the past have voted the straight 
Democratic ticket. And why must you in the past have 
voted the straight Democratic ticket before you are permitted 
by the prosecution to serve as a juror in this case? The reason 
is, that they expect you to vote the straight Democratic ticket 
in the rendition of your verdict. Be not deceived about it. 
To say the least of it, they expect your political affiliation to 
help you render that verdict. Then in what attitude are they 
placing you men before the communities in which you reside 
and before the eyes of the world — relying upon your political 
affiliations for a verdict of guilty, whether the law and the 
facts authorize such a verdict or not. If I were you, men, 
careful of my good standing in the country and jealous of 
my honor, I would certainly resent any such imputation upon 
my integrity, whether those imputations came from friend or 
foe. 

I am a Republican, gentlemen. I have never had any apolo- 
gies to make for my Republicanism. I have none to make 
now. You gentlemen are Democrats and you have a right 
to be Democrats. You have a right to affiliate with whatever 



302 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

political party you believe to be to the best interests of this 
country. The man who would deprive you of that right is an 
intellectual thief and robber at heart. But no man has the 
right — no set of men have the right, to expect of you a cer- 
tain sort of verdict by reason of your political affiliations, 
when you have entered the j ury-box and have taken the solemn 
oath that you took to try me from the law and the testimony. 
Doubtless you gentlemen are saying, in your hearts, that it 
does look as if the prosecution has had a sinister motive in 
this. Doubtless you are saying in your hearts that, if the 
prosecution is relying on our political affiliations for a verdict 
of guilty, they are relying upon a broken reed. There is 
not an honest man on this ^ury but what is saying that in his 
heart. Doubtless you are saying that your political affilia- 
tions sh-all have nothing to do with the rendition of your 
verdict, one way or the other. There is not an honest man 
on this jury but what is saying that in his heart; not a one, 
my friends. Doubtless you are saying that you have no bias 
or prejudice in this case, one way or the other, and all that 
may be true; and yet you may be mistaken about it. I am 
told that there are certain fever districts in some of the states 
of this Union, notably in Florida and Missouri, where, so long 
as one remains at a certain elevation above the sea level, 
he is immune from the dreaded fever; but that so soon as he 
descends below the safety line, and comes in contact with 
the germs of the disease, he contracts it. If you were 
a stranger in that country and should go down and drive 
out and some one should say to you : " You have contracted 
the fever," you would say : " You are very much mistaken. 
I never felt better and freer of disease in all my life ; " and 
yet, without your knowing it, you would have contracted the 
fever. And you, gentlemen, may have come to this case 
with that fever of prejudice of which you are not aware. 
Such a thing is possible. 

I know that you men have heard of me. I know you have 
heard a great many things said about me that are untrue. I 
know that is a fact. The truth is, that the question of my 
guilt or innocence has long since become a political question 
in this state. You know that the Democratic papers, from 



POLITICS IN THE CASE 303 

the great dailies down to the Httle country organs, have con- 
tinuously and vociferously proclaimed that I am guilty. The 
Republican press, on the other hand, says I am innocent. 
Political campaigns have been waged in this state upon that 
question. Politicians have been elected to office and others 
have been defeated for office in proclaiming the one or deny- 
ing the other. It has become a political question throughout. 
On the one hand stands the great mass of Democratic voters 
throughout the state, who have been taught to believe that 
I am guilty. On the other hand stands the great mass of 
Republican voters throughout the state, who believe I am 
not guilty. You know that. The communities from which 
you gentlemen came are divided on that question to-day ; and 
they are divided on it, in the main, as you know, along 
political lines. The affair generated in political strife and 
excitement. The Democratic leader of the state was killed 
— shamefully murdered. The Republicans were charged 
with that murder, and it is almost impossible to take politics 
from this case. It is a difficult matter not to make up one's 
mind about a thing when it is in everybody's mouth ; when 
it is discussed through the newspapers, from the pulpit, on 
the hustings, at the country cross-roads, and at the country 
stores. 

Some of you men said that you had formed opinions in this 
case. You, Mr. Layson ; you, Mr. Wyatt, and you, Mr. 
Mitchell, said that you had formed opinions, and that you 
were afraid to risk yourselves and afraid to trust yourselves 
to give me a fair trial. Others of you said that you had 
formed opinions in this case. You, Mr, Wilson, said that you 
would go into the jury-box with prejudice and that that 
prejudice -v^-ould have to be removed by testimony. You, Mr. 
Ingalls, sp'A that you had an opinion formed, and both of you, 
Mr. Estes, said that. Others of you said you had not formed 
any oit.nion. You said that, Mr. Ryan, and you, Mr. Booth, 
and you, Mr. Hill; but you may have come to this jury-box, 
likfrthe man out of the fever district of Florida, having that 
germ of prejudice and bias of which you are not aware; such 
a thing is possible. And in the name of all that is dear and 
sacred, I ask you to rid yourselves of all feelings of hostility, 



304 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

bias or prejudice that you may feel towards me by reason of 
my political affiliations, if you have any, or by reason of the 
prejudice you have against the section of the state from 
which I come, if you have any, and give me that same sort of 
fair and impartial trial that you would give one of your 
neighbor's boys. Whatever may be my politics, whether 
good politics or bad politics, it does not alter the fact that I 
am a citizen of this Commonwealth and a human being, and 
entitled to a fair and just trial at your hand's. Whether the 
section of the state from which I come be a good section or a 
bad section, it does not alter the fact that I am entitled 
to a fair and unprejudiced hearing at your hands; and 
I believe that you are going to do what you can to give 
it to me. I believe that. But I ask you to bear in mind 
that we are all a frail, weak, short-sighted set of human beings 
in this world; and that our prejudice's and likes and dislikes 
have a great deal to do in controlling our conduct throughout 
life. The prosecution know this ; and, as I say, they have 
had you summoned here in the hope that your political affili- 
ations would write for you a verdict of guilty. How insidi- 
ously has the poison of political prejudice and revenge been 
injected into this case! Everything has been done and said 
that could be done and said to make you gentlemen have con- 
tempt for me. You know that. The mountain people have 
been sneeringly referred to. Mr. Hendrick called them mur- 
derers, and marauders, red-handed assassins and black-hearted 
villains. That conduct on the part of the prosecution is 
neither fair to you nor to me. It is not fair to you because 
it is an efifort on the part of the prosecution to have you con- 
vict me by reason of your prejudice, and none of us is without 
it. It is not fair to me, because it is an effort on their part to 
have you convict me outside of the law and independent of 
the testimony. I think the prosecution should deal fairly 
with you, gentlemen, and with me ; and I think we should deal 
fairly with each other ; and, as far as I am individually con- 
cerned, I propose to deal fairly with you in the discussion 
of this case ; and I desire to say to you now that if I advance 
any argument that does not seem to you to be reasonable 
and right, I ask you to reject it. If I misquote or misstate 



AN APPEAL TO REASON 305 

any of the testimony, I beg of you not to consider it, because 
you ought not to. I think we should deal fairly with each 
other, men ; and if I properly understand the mission of an 
advocate before a jury, or of a lawyer, or client in the argu- 
ment of a case, it is not, or should not be, to misquote or 
misrepresent the law or to dwarf or twist the evidence to 
suit one's own ideas in any individual case. 

Argument before a jury should never be used for the pur- 
pose of artfully covering up the salient points of either the 
law or the testimony to the end that the Jury may be induced 
to bring in an unjust verdict, unjust either to the state or 
unjust to the accused. So far as I am individually concerned, 
I know that I am gifted with no such words, or worth, or 
power of speech to force you either beyond the law or the 
testimony in the case, if I had desires of that character, which 
I have not. 

These gentlemen prosecuting me here have been given all 
the advantages that this glorious blue-grass country and 
other favored sections of our land afford, while my home and 
life have been cast among people whose advantages have been 
poor, whose means have been limited, and whose opportunities 
to fit their sons and daughters to cope with their fellow men 
have been of the worst. Besides, men, as you see, I am a 
mere boy, unaccustomed to making speeches like these able 
and adroit lawyers. I have no power to write my innocence 
on your hearts and engrave it on your bones, as justice in this 
case says it ought to be done. If I had the same power of 
speech and the same force of logic as my friend, Mr. Franklin, 
I could convince you, almost before my argument began, that 
the harming of Mr. Goebel never entered my heart ; and that 
I am the worst abused and persecuted man ever accused of 
crime on the American soil. But these extraordinary gifts, 
men, I do not possess ; and I shall, therefore, have to ask you 
to go over the law and the testimony in this case in a 
commonplace way ; and if I can be of any aid to you in arriv- 
ing at a correct verdict, I shall feel that I have discharged my 
duty fairly and faithfully to you and been of service to my- 
self. I ask you to let us reason together. 

If you have me convicted in your hearts already ; if you feel 



3o6 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

that I am a guilty assassin and you regret that you were 
brought into this close contact with me, if during the progress 
of this trial your ears have been open and anxious and ready 
and willing to catch everything of a damaging nature brought 
out against me and have turned a deaf ear to all that has been 
said on the side of the defense, then any effort on my part 
to convince you that I am an innocent man would be a waste 
of my needed vitality and a useless consumption of your time. 
But you, gentlemen, will not do that. You have taken a sol- 
emn and impressive oath : " I do solemnly swear that I will 
try this case according to the law and the testimony and a 
true verdict render, so help me God ; " and so far as within 
your power lies, I believe you will keep sacred that solemn 
oath. Whatever may be your religious tenets, whether be- 
liever or unbeliever, Catholic or Protestant, Jew or Gentile, 
whatever may be your political affiliations, whether it be that 
of a Democrat or that of a Republican, the oath you have 
taken has within it a mighty force, that ought to lift every 
man who takes it out of all political bias and prejudice. So 
far as our weak and imperfect nature will allow us, it ought 
to lift us into a region of absolute duty and absolute truth. 
When your verdict is rendered, the testimony and the law in 
this case ought to authorize and justify you in that verdict. 
You have raised your hands between your heads and heaven 
and called Almighty God to witness that you would render a 
true verdict in this case. The eyes of a proud Common- 
wealth are upon you ; aye, the eyes of a great nation are 
turned towards the scenes of this trial. The prayers of a 
justice-loving people are with you in the rendition of such 
a verdict that innocence merits, right demands, your heart 
sanctions and your consciences approve. I have always be- 
lieved that the right in this case would in the end prevail. 
Seasons in and seasons out, years in and years out, through 
dark fortunes and through bright, (if there have been any 
bright), I have continued pleading and appealing to my 
fellow countrymen ; and I am now particularly pleading and 
appealing to you, gentlemen, to end this long and bitter con- 
troversy in a way that justice demands, right approves and 
your hearts sanction. 



A GRAVE RESPONSIBILITY 307 

I am sure you will agree with me that when it is ended 
it ought to be ended in such a way that no harm shall be- 
fall an innocent man and that no guilty man shall go un- 
punished ; and I am sure you will agree further that when it 
is ended it ought to be ended in such a way as shall be a credit 
to Kentucky for her sense of fairness and justice in dealing 
with those accused of the infraction of her laws. If you, men, 
should render a verdict of not guilty in this case and it should 
turn out within the next week or within the next year that I 
am guilty, then Kentucky would be held in just contempt for 
the lax administration of the law ; if upon the other hand you 
should find a verdict of guilty in this case and it should turn 
out within the next one hundred years, as it will turn out, 
that I am not guilty, then a greater injury has been done the 
state than if she had put herself down upon the side of law 
and justice and mercy and humanity. So it becomes im- 
portant, gentlemen, to the state of which we are citizens, that 
a just verdict be rendered in this case. Such a verdict as 
will do no injury to the state, no harm to the accused, no 
violence to the oaths you have taken to render a just verdict 
and such a verdict as will not in future years bring remorse 
of conscience to your souls. 

There is but one thing to do in order to determine what 
that verdict shall be, and that is to determine the question of 
my guilt or innocence. So far a's the merits of this individual 
controversy are concerned, it does not matter whether one 
thousand mountaineers or ten thousand were brought to 
Frankfort by me before the killing of Mr. Goebel, because no 
man who came with that mountain crowd has been indicted 
for firing the fatal shot. So far as the merits of this individ- 
ual controversy are concerned, it does not matter whether 
Taylor called out the militia before or after the shooting of 
Senator Goebel. I was not a military officer, gentlemen. I 
had nothing to do with the militia. No connection has been 
shown between me and the militia. So all these things do 
not matter. The question is, the thing with which I am 
charged is, did I procure some one to shoot and murder Sen- 
ator Goebel and was he killed in pursuance of that counsel 
and advice, if I did so counsel and advise? 



3o8 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

That is the question in this case, men, and in the determina- 
tion of that question there are certain well-defined roads we 
must travel, two beacon-lights by which our heads and hands 
and hearts are to be guided in our deliberations ; and that is 
the law that has been given to you by this Honorable Court 
and the testimony you have heard from the mouths of the wit- 
nesses. That is it, men, those are the two things : the law 
and the testimony. 

This is a peculiar case in some respects. Under ordinary 
circumstances and under ordinary conditions the juries of the 
country are left to decide what weight and what credence 
they are willing to give to the testimony of any witness or 
any number of witnesses ; but that is not true in this case. 
Human wisdom and human experience have been such that 
when meji are charged with conspiracy to murder their fellow 
men, those men can not be relied upon to tell the truth when 
they are testifying against another alleged co-conspirator for 
their own liberty. The Court tells you in one of his instruc- 
tions, I believe number eight, that one alleged conspirator 
can not corroborate another alleged conspirator; that you can 
not believe all the alleged conspirators unless their testimony 
is corroborated by other testimony material to the issue. If 
the county of Bourbon was filled to standing-room with men 
all swearing until they were black in the face to any particular 
fact, if they were alleged co-conspirators, this Court tells you 
that you can not believe them all unless their testimony is cor- 
roborated by other testimony material to the issues. If the 
blackest convict in the penitentiary at Frankfort should come 
here wearing the badges of infamy around his person, the law 
tells you and the Court tells you that his testimony would be 
entitled to more weight and more credence than the testimony 
of a million Cultons, a million Goldens, a million Cecils, and 
a million Youtseys. Why? Because the law would not chal- 
lenge the negro's testimony. It would not require the negro's 
testimony to be corroborated before it could be believed ; but 
the law does challenge the testimony of Culton, Golden, Cecil, 
Youtsey and Company, and says that it must be corroborated 
before it can be believed. 

Another thing in regard to these instructions. We have 



" BEYOND A REASONABLE DOUBT " 309 

heard a great deal said by Colonel Hendrick about a reason- 
able doubt, believing things beyond a reasonable doubt, before 
you could convict the defendant in this case. If you were to 
rely upon the words of Colonel Hendrick, the words " reason- 
able doubt " are a mere empty phrase. It does not mean any- 
thing, and does not signify anything. This Honorable Court 
has a different conception of that phrase, " beyond a reasonable 
doubt." I will not take up your time to read these instruc- 
tions — that was done by Judge Morton — but I desire to say 
to you that in every instruction upon which a verdict of guilty 
can be asked you mhII be compelled to believe in the guilt of 
the accused beyond a reasonable doubt. This court has gone 
further than that. It feared that you might overlook that 
important language in these instructions, and it has embodied 
it in separate, distinct and independent instructions, and said 
to you that you can not find the defendant guilty unless you 
believe beyond a reasonable doubt, from the testimony, that 
he is guilty of that with which he is charged. What does that 
phrase "beyond a reasonable doubt" mean, gentlemen? It 
must mean something; else, the Court would not have used 
it. And I desire to say to you that there is a great distinction 
between the trial of civil and criminal cases in this particular. 
If this had been a civil case, the Court would have told you 
that the verdict ought to go to whichever side has the greater 
weight of testimony to sustain it. Our law-makers in their 
wisdom have said this. Jurors in all civil cases have hung 
up before their eyes the scales of justice, as it were, and are 
required to render a decision for whichever side has the 
greater weight and value of testimony to sustain it. If it is 
for the plaintiff, find for the plaintiff. If it is for the defend- 
ant, find for the defendant. But that is not the law in the 
trial of crimiinal cases. Human liberty and human life are 
worth more than mere dollars and cents. It is so precious and 
so sacred in the eyes of the law, before you, in the capacity 
of Jurors in this case, can lay violent hands upon my liberty, 
you must believe from the testimony, beyond all doubt, founded 
upon reason, that I am guilty of that with which I am charged. 
Greenleaf, the great writer on this branch of the law, has 
defined the phrase "beyond a reasonable doubt." He says it 



310 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

means this : " That in all cases of circumstantial testimony, 
the facts introduced upon the side of the prosecution must be 
such that there can be no escape from the conclusion that the 
defendant is guilty. In other words, the crime with which 
the defendant is charged could not have been committed at 
the hands of another or by the procurement of another." That 
is the law in this case. I will give Mr. Franklin the oppor- 
tunity and the privilege to read to you from any law book 
known to civilized man, to confute or contradict the position 
I have here taken. Applying that law to this case, there is not 
a possibility of you, gentlemen, rendering a verdict of guilty. 
For is it not possible that Youtsey fired the fatal shot on his 
own volition? Is not that possible? Is it not possible that 
there could have been a conspiracy without my being a mem- 
ber of it? Is it not possible that Butler and Miller and Jim 
Frank Taylor and E. U. Fordyce and Ed Mentz and Walter 
Day and George W. Long, told the truth, when they told you 
that my mission to Louisville on the thirtieth of January was 
for a legitimate and honorable purpose? If any of these posi- 
tions can be true, there is no possibility of there being found, 
in this case, a verdict of guilty. 

Now, gentlemen, having briefly stated the law governing this 
case, I desire to take up the testimony and see what it proves 
and what it disproves. Before there can be a contention be- 
tween any set of individuals upon any sort of proposition, 
there must be some common ground upon which to stand, 
something upon which the two contending parties agree. The 
prosecution upon the one hand and the defendant upon the 
other, in this case, agree, that Senator Goebel came to a shame- 
ful death and that those responsible for his taking-ofif should be 
severely dealt with. We agree, further, that assassination is 
the most cowardly and blackest of crimes known in the cata- 
logue of ofifenses. 

Every honest impulse of the human heart revolts and rebels 
against it. We agree further, I presume, that the killing of 
Goebel was the worst possible thing that could have befallen 
the Republican party in this state, and whether we agree on 
this proposition or not, you, gentlemen, know that it is 
nevertheless true. Then the things upon which we agree are, 



THE PROSECUTION'S CONTENTION 311 

that Senator Goebel came to a shameful death; that those 
responsible for his taking-off should be punished ; and that his 
killing was the worst thing that could have befallen the Re- 
publican party in thi's state. 

We differ as to who is responsible for his death. The pros- 
ecution claims that Senator Goebel came to his death as the 
result of a huge Republican conspiracy of which, it says, I was 
a member. And in support of their contention they introduce 
a large mass of testimony which may, for the convenience of 
discussion, be divided into five main divisions : 

It says, first, that the bringing of the mountain crowd to 
Frankfort, five days before Senator Goebel came to his death, 
constituted a part of the conspiracy to murder him. 

It says, second, that it was the plan of those implicated in 
the conspiracy to have the fatal shot fired from the office of 
the secretary of state, and that it was fired from there. 

It says, third, that I absented myself from that office on the 
thirtieth of January, 1900, for two reasons : first, to give the 
assassin an opportunity to use that office, and for the further 
reason, as it alleges, to try to take suspicion of the crime from 
myself. 

It says, fourth, that the militia was to be used for the pur- 
pose of protecting those alleged to be implicated in the killing 
from arrest or from violence, and that it was so used. 

And it introduces, fifth, a large mass of threats and state- 
ments on the part of divers individuals, Culton, Golden, Yout- 
sey and others, to try to bolster up their claim and theory of 
a conspiracy. I think I have stated with accuracy and with 
fairness the claims of the prosecution in this case. 

The defendant, upon the other hand, denies these various 
allegations on the part of the prosecution and says first, that 
Senator Goebel did not come to his death as the result of a 
huge Republican conspiracy, or of any conspiracy, of which I 
was a member. 

The defense says, second, that the bringing of the mountain 
crowd to Frankfort, five days before Senator Goebel came to 
his death, did not constitute a part of the conspiracy to kill 
Senator Goebel ; as alleged by the prosecution ; but that they 
came to Frankfort upon a legitimate and peaceful mission; to 



312 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

petition the Legislature and remonstrate against those in power 
from overthrowing the will of the people as expressed at the 
polls. 

The defense says, third, that if the fatal shot was fired from 
the office of the secretary of state it is the very best proof 
that I am not implicated in it ; because nobody but a fool 
would agree for a murderous shot to be fired from the win- 
dows of his office, or his home, if he were connected with it. 

The defense says, fourth, that I did not absent myself from 
the office on the thirtieth of January, 1900, for the purpose 
either of letting my office be used for assassination, or of try- 
ing to cover up my alleged connection with it ; but that my 
trip to Louisville on that day was for a peaceful and legitimate 
mission, of trying to bring to Frankfort, mostly from Western 
Kentucky, another crowd of men to petition the Legislature. 

The defense says, fifth, that the militia was not used, as 
alleged by the prosecution in this case, to protect the assassins 
from arrest, but that it was used for the purpose of protecting 
the occupants of the Executive Building and the attaches of 
the various offices from mob violence. The defense further 
says, that if the prosecution be right in their claims that the 
militia was used for the purpose of protecting the assassins, 
I should not be held chargeable with it, because I was not 
a military officer and I had nothing to do with the calling out 
of the militia. There has been absolutely no connection 
shown between me and the militia, one way or the other. 

And the defense claims, sixth, as to these various threats 
and statements proven on the part of the prosecution, that they 
have been proven by men like Golden, Culton, Cecil and 
Youtsey, who are under indictment in this case and swearing 
for immunity, or they are sworn to by such men as Broughton, 
Huber, Smith and Company, who are swearing for money. 
Those are the claims of the prosecution and the defense in this 
case. Somebody must be right ; somebody must be wrong. 
The claims of both sides can not be right because the two 
claims are antagonistic, one to the other, and the existence of 
the one set of claims negatives the existence of the other set. 

(Court here took a few minutes for recreation.) 

When the Court kindly gave me a little rest, gentlemen, I 



THE CONSPIRACY CHARGE 313 

was just saying that the claims on the part of the prosecution 
and those on the part of the defense could not possibly both 
be true. Now, I desire to take up the first claim on the part 
of the prosecution, namely, that Senator Goebel came to his 
death as the result of a huge Republican conspiracy, of which 
they say I was a member. That assertion on the part of the 
prosecution, like every other charge they make, is either true 
or false. If they are correct, that Senator Goebel came to his 
death as the result of a huge Republican conspiracy of which 
I was a member, I see no escape for you, gentlemen, but 
to bring in a verdict of guilty. If, upon the other hand, they 
are mistaken in that charge, you, gentlemen, can not do any- 
thing but bring in a verdict of not guilty. 

Senator Goebel, from the evidence, came to his death in one 
or the other of three ways. First, he came to his death as 
the result of a misadventure which I will not discuss ; or 
he came to his death at the hands of some one acting 
on his own volition; or he came to his death as the re- 
sult of a conspiracy. If he came to his death at the hands 
of some one acting on his own volition, I could not be guilty. 
I was seventy-five miles away from the scene of the tragedy 
at the time of its commission and could not have fired the fatal 
shot. He either came to his death in one or the other of the 
two ways that I have stated, and in either case I could not be 
guilty; or he came to his death as the result of a conspiracy, 
and if he came to his death as the result of a conspiracy, I 
was either a member of that conspiracy or I was not a mem- 
ber of it. If he came to his death as the result of a con- 
spiracy of which I was not a member, no one will contend 
that I am guilty. 

Let us address ourselves to the first contention of the prose- 
cution. In order to make any particular individuals re- 
sponsible for the death of Senator Goebel, they must have 
met somewhere and formed some sort of plan to 
bring about the death of Senator Goebel ; and he must 
have been killed in pursuance of that particular plan. Other- 
wise, no guilt attaches so far as the death is concerned. Two 
things are necessary. There must have been a conspiracy to 
kill Senator Goebel by, at least, two individuals, and he must 



314 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

have met his death in pursuance of that paiticular conspiracy 
formed by them. Then, if the prosecution knew who killed 
Senator Goebel at the time this indictment was returned against 
me, it was the duty, under the law, of the Commonwealth's 
attorney, Mr. Franklin, to name those men in the indictment. 

Either there was, or there was not, a conspiracy. If there 
was, it must have been formed at some place, and some one 
must have been in it. It could not have sprung into existence 
without human aid. Stones and trees do not enter into con- 
spiracies to murder human beings. The Court says, in his 
instructions : " A criminal conspiracy is a corrupt combination 
of two or more persons by concerted action to do an unlawful 
act or to do a lawful act by unlawful means." Then before 
there can be a conspiracy there must be a corrupt combination 
of two or more persons. For there to have been a con- 
spiracy to bring about the death of Senator Goebel, two 
or more persons must have met at some place and entered 
into an agreement looking to that end; that is, in order to 
have been an agreement there must have been some talk on 
the subject and the men must have met together. Then we 
arrive at the conclusion that the men who conspired to take 
the life of Senator Goebel, if there was a conspiracy, must 
have met at a place for that purpose or had some communica- 
tion. That is a plain proposition, gentlemen. The prosecution 
can not dispute it. Let us see who the prosecution says were 
the ones who entered into the alleged conspiracy. 

Let us see. A while after Senator Goebel was killed, on the 
thirtieth of January, 1900, it was either claimed by the prose- 
cution, or its friends, that this alleged conspiracy that resulted 
in the death of Senator Goebel had within its scope most of 
the leaders of the Republican party of the 'state. You know, 
gentlemen, that charges of that character were made. The 
prosecution has formally charged some twenty men with being 
in the conspiracy to bring about the death of Senator Goebel. 
Now, let us look and see whom the prosecution has been 
mistaken about in their claims and in their charges. 

To begin with, old man Holland Whittaker was arrested a 
few minutes after Senator Goebel was killed, charged with 
having fired the shot. He was carried to the Franklin County 



THE FIRST ARRESTS 315 

jail, surrounded by a mob that begged for the poor man's life, 
and wanted to take it without trial by either judge or jury. 

Following Holland Whittaker's arrest, the next man 
charged with having taken part in the murder of Senator 
Goebel was Silas Jones, a witness here for the prosecution. 
You remember that Jones was arrested on the ninth day of 
February in the city of Frankfort, by Detective Armstrong 
and others ; carried down to the police headquarters and there 
told that he either killed Senator Goebel himself, or knew 
who did it, and if he did not tell they would call the mob. 
Silas Jones did not know and could not tell, and he was 
lodged in the jail at Frankfort. 

Following his arrest came the arrest of a Mr. Sutton, sheriff 
of Whitley County. The papers teemed with damning testi- 
mony against him. They said it was certain that he was impli- 
cated and he was carried from one jail to another of this state 
in shackles and chains, branded as a felon. 

Following his arrest came the arrest of Mr, Hazelipp, who 
was an officer at the asylum at Lakeland. He was carried in 
chains up to Frankfort. Following that, on the ninth of 
March, warrants of arrest were issued for my brother, Charles 
Finley, William Culton, Captain John Davis and myself, 
charging us with the crime of bringing about the death of 
Senator Goebel, 

Following that came the arrest of Henry E. Youtsey, on the 
twenty-seventh of March, 1900. These were the only arrests 
that were made before people were formally accused by indict- 
ment. 

At the April term of the Franklin court, 1900, indictments 
were returned against five men who, the prosecution charged, 
were principals in this murder, namely, Holland Whittaker, 
Jim Howard, Berry Howard, " Tallow Dick " Combs, and 
Henry E. Youtsey. They said in the indictment, which has 
been read to you, that there were a number of other people 
connected with the five named as principals, who were un- 
known to the grand jury and unknown to the prosecution. At 
the same time indictments were returned against several people, 
charging them with being accessories before the fact to the 
murder of William Goebel. They indicted at that time Taylor, 



3i6 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

Finley, myself, my brother, Captain John Davis, Green Golden, 
Wharton Golden and Bill Culton, charging us with being 
accessories before the fact. Following these indictments, the 
next man charged by the prosecution as being implicated in 
the murder of William Goebel, was his Honor, Robert 
Noakes, Esq. Robert Noakes was arrested over in Virginia a 
few days before I had my first trial in this court-house in 
July and August, 1900. He was brought down to Frankfort, 
stayed in jail a day or two, was brought over here and testified 
in my case, and after doing that, he was never indicted. Fol- 
lowing that, the next man charged with the murder of Mr. 
Goebel was Captain Garnett D. Ripley. He was indicted at 
the January term of the Frankfort circuit court, 1901, a year 
after Senator Goebel had been killed. It took the prosecution 
a whole year to make up its mind and come to the conclusion 
that Captain Garnett D. Ripley was guilty of the murder of 
Senator Goebel. They arrested him down in Henry County, 
carried him up to Frankfort, and lodged him behind prison 
bars. 

The next men charged by the prosecution with being impli- 
cated in the murder of Senator Goebel were Cecil, the witness, 
and Zack Steele. These men were not indicted until the Jan- 
uary term of the Franklin circuit court, 1902, two years after 
Senator Goebel had been killed. I believe these are all the 
men that have been formally charged by the prosecution with 
being implicated in the murder of Senator Goebel. 

Now, let us see who it is that the prosecution has confessed 
by its own conduct to be not guilty of that with which they 
were charged. 

Silas Jones was arrested, but never indicted. Noakes was 
arrested, but never indicted. Sutton was arrested, but never 
indicted. Hazelipp was arrested, but never indicted. That 
makes four men whom the prosecution has certainly confessed 
by their conduct to be not guilty, else they would have indicted 
them and tried them. Four men from this twenty leaves six- 
teen men who, the prosecution at one time or another was so 
thoroughly convinced, were guilty men, that they actually had 
them indicted by that convenient body, the grand jury of 
Franklin County. Of the sixteen men, whom the prosecution 



NOT GUILTY OF MURDER 317 

has formally indicted, let us see whom they have confessed by 
their own conduct to be not guilty of the murder of Senator 
Goebel. 

They have confessed by their conduct that Captain Davis is 
not guilty of the murder of Senator Goebel, although he was 
indicted at the same term of court at which I was indicted, 
and although he was on the train with me when we were try- 
ing to get to the mountains of Kentucky. He was dressed in 
a military garb and he had a pardon in his pocket from W. S. 
Taylor for alleged complicity in the murder of Senator Goe- 
bel. These things, say the prosecution against me, are over- 
whelming and damning testimony of my guilt. They are not 
so in the ca'se of Captain Davis. He is not guilty. The prose- 
cution has confessed that by its conduct, because in August, 
1900, Captain Davis was given bond and sent to his home and 
told by the prosecution if they ever needed him they would 
send for him. They do not now say that Captain Davis had 
anything to do with the murder of Senator Goebel. You have 
not heard anything of that character in this case. So when 
they charged in this indictment that Captain John Davis and 
I conspired together in bringing about the death of Mr. Goebel, 
that charge in your indictment, Mr. Franklin, is wrong, ac- 
cording to your own confession. 

Let us see whom else. They charged Green Golden with 
being implicated with me in the murder of Senator Goebel ; 
they said that Green Golden and myself entered into a con- 
spiracy to bring about the death of Senator Goebel. Green 
Golden was not arrested for a long time. He was finally 
arrested and brought to Frankfort and lodged in jail, and 
after many months of weary waiting, was at last discharged 
on bond and sent home. The prosecution has never tried him. 
They never got ready to try him. They never expect to try 
him. And when they charge in this indictment that I con- 
spired with Green Golden to bring about the death of Mr. 
Goebel, that charge, they now confess by their conduct, is 
wrong. 

Let us see whom else. They charge in this indictment that 
I conspired with Wharton Golden and W. H. Culton to bring 
about the death of Senator Goebel. Golden and Culton are 



3i8 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

two of the leading star-witnesses for the prosecution. Golden 
says he heard a great deal of rash talk. He says that he heard 
me use a great many expressions of violence, but as far as he 
is individually concerned, he did not know anything about 
Senator Goebel going to be killed on the thirtieth of January. 
He said the only way he expected Senator Goebel to be killed 
was in a fight in the legislative hall. So, if Golden's word 
can be relied upon, Golden certainly did not know anything 
about the alleged plan of killing Senator Goebel, and, there- 
fore, the conclusion is that I could not have been in any con- 
spiracy with Golden, if I were in one at all. And there is an- 
other fact which leads me to believe that the prosecution does 
not believe that Golden was in a conspiracy to murder Senator 
Goebel. You remember he told you that he was over in 
Cincinnati selling hardware in the store of Mr. Arthur 
Goebel. I do not for a minute believe that, if Arthur Goebel 
believed Golden was guilty of complicity in the murder of 
his brother, Mr. Goebel would have the remotest connec- 
tion with Wharton Golden, one way or the other. I am confi- 
dent he would not do it. And there is another thing about 
Culton which leads me to believe that the prosecution doe's 
not believe him to be guilty. I am not passing on the guilt 
or innocence of Culton. I have nothing to do with that. 
Culton says he is not guilty. He is a witness for the prosecu- 
tion and he says he heard a great many threats and statements 
and heard a great deal of wild talk, and that he was the 
man chosen to go up in the House of Representatives and 
raise a fight and kill off enough Democrats to make a Repub- 
lican majority arid all that, but he further tells you that he 
was the worst surprised man in the whole city of Frankfort 
when he heard of Senator Goebel's being shot. He further 
tells you that he never did advise with me in his life concern- 
ing the death of Senator Goebel, that he never heard me use an 
expression about it one way or the other. He says he heard 
me use wild talk, but not about killing Senator Goebel. That 
is the testimony in this case and it will not be denied. And 
if the prosecution believe that Culton was a member of the 
conspiracy to kill Senator Goebel, I can not think that it would 
have him over at the Wellington Hotel, the best hotel in this 



INDICTMENT MUST BE WRONG 319 

town, and be thrown in daily companionship with him. It is 
your duty, Mr. Franklin, to prosecute the guilty and not to 
associate with them in ideal fellowship and make out of them 
boon companions. 

Culton says he is not swearing for immunity. Culton says 
he is not getting anything for his testimony. If Culton is not 
swearing for immunity, and is not getting anything for his 
testimony, the prosecution surely feels that he is not guilty, 
because if he is not swearing for immunity nor to get money, 
if he is guilty, the prosecution would certainly have brought 
him to trial. But you can put Golden and Culton down in 
whatever category you want to ; they both say that they were 
not in any conspiracy with me to bring about the death of 
Mr. Goebel. Golden said he didn't know anything about 
Goebel's going to be killed from the office of the secretary of 
state, and that he had no knowledge of such a plan, and Culton 
tells you that he was the most surprised man in Frankfort 
when he heard it, and that he was never in any plot or plan 
to bring about the death of Mr. Goebel. Then, if the testi- 
mony of Golden and Culton can be relied upon, certainly I was 
not in any conspiracy with them to bring about the death of 
Mr. Goebel, because they say so, and they are star-witnesses 
for the prosecution. Therefore, when you charge in your in- 
dictment, Mr. Franklin, that I conspired with Golden and Cul- 
ton to bring about the death of Mr. Goebel, that much more of 
your indictment must be wrong. 

Let us see whom else. They charge in this indictment that 
I was in a conspiracy with Frank Cecil to bring about the death 
of Senator Goebel. They put Cecil upon the witness-stand 
and Cecil says that, so far as he is individually concerned, he 
had not the slightest idea that Senator Goebel was going to be 
killed, except the impression left upon his mind by the expres- 
sion he says that he heard me make the night before Goebel 
was killed. He says, so far as he was concerned, he was in 
no plot or plan to kill Senator Goebel. He said he did 
not know anything about Mr. Goebel's going to be killed from 
the office of the secretary of state. He said when I told him 
on the night of the twenty-ninth of January that there was a 
man coming down to kill Goebel the next day, that he never 



320 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

asked me who it was or anything about it. But I will get to 
that conversation later on. He said he never asked me any- 
thing about it ; never inquired about it ; didn't care anything 
about it. He says when I told him there was a man across 
the hall who wanted to kill Mr. Goebel a few days ago, and 
that I would not let him do it, that he did not inquire what 
the name of the man was ; that he did not know anything 
about it and cared less. Then if Cecil can be relied upon, so 
far as Cecil is concerned, he and myself did not have anything 
to do with the murder of Mr. Goebel. Cecil said that he was 
an innocent man. Then when you charge me in this indict- 
ment with being in a conspiracy to bring about the death of 
Mr. Goebel, with Frank Cecil, if Cecil can be believed, that 
much more of your indictment is wrong. 

Now, let us see whom else. They charge in this indictment 
that I was in a conspiracy with poor old Holland Whittaker to 
bring about the death of Senator Goebel. That is the charge 
in this indictment. Whittaker was turned loose on bond 
away back in August, 1900, and has been with his wife and 
children ever since, and the prosecution now says old man 
Whittaker had nothing to do with the killing of Mr. Goebel. 
Terms of court after terms of court have passed in this court- 
house, and the case of Holland Whittaker has not been called 
for trial. The prosecution has never gotten ready to try old 
man Whittaker. Whittaker has never prepared for trial. 
They have given him bond and told him to go home, and, if 
their present theory is to be relied upon, old man Whittaker 
had nothing to do with the killing of Mr. Goebel. Therefore, 
the conclusion is inevitable that I could not have conspired 
with him to bring about the death of Mr. Goebel. 

Let us see whom else. Captain Garnett D. Ripley has been 
indicted as being an accessory before the fact to the murder 
of Senator Goebel. They charge that he and I were impli- 
cated in the murder of Senator Goebel. As I said a few 
minutes ago, it took the prosecution a whole year to find out 
that Captain Garnett D. Ripley was guilty. They did not 
indict him until the January term of the Franklin circuit 
court, 1901. That was nearly a whole year after Senator 
Goebel had been killed, and nearly a whole year since they 



• COMPLICITY CHARGE UNTRUE 321 

had charged me with being implicated in the murder of Sen- 
ator Goebeh In other words, the prosecution had a whole 
year to investigate the guilt of Captain Garnett D. Ripley 
and after a thorough investigation they came to the conclusion 
that he was guilty ; and they arrested him down in Henry 
County and carried him up to the Franklin County jail, fol- 
lowed by his broken-hearted wife and terrified little daughter, 
and lodged him behind the bars. His trial came up in April 
of the same year and the jury in that case said, " We, the jury, 
agree and find the defendant not guilty," and they sent him 
home. Therefore, when they charged in this indictment, that 
I was in a conspiracy with Captain Garnett D. Ripley to 
bring about the death of Senator Goebel, that much more of 
their indictment must be wrong. 

Let us see whom else. There was Berry Howard, with 
whom, they charged in this indictment, I conspired to bring 
about the death of Senator Goebel. Berry Howard was not 
arrested for quite a long time. He was finally arrested and 
lodged in jail in Frankfort. He was put on trial for his life, 
and, Mr. Franklin, before the jury, begged for his life. The 
jury acquitted Berry Howard and sent him home. Therefore, 
I could not have been in any conspiracy to kill Senator Goebel 
with Berry Howard, because the jury in that case said that he 
was innocent of the charge against him, and, therefore, when 
you charge us with joint complicity in the murder of Mr. 
Goebel, that much more of your indictment, Mr. Franklin, 
must be wrong. 

Let us see whom else. Here is Dick Combs. They charged 
in this indictment that Dick Combs and myself were in a 
conspiracy to bring about the death of Senator Goebel. Dick 
Combs was finally lodged in jail at Frankfort. Away back 
in August, igoo, he was given bond and sent home by Mr. 
Franklin, and if their present theory can now be relied upon, 
Dick Combs had nothing to do with the murder of Senator 
Goebel. Youtsey told Mr. Arthur Goebel that it was Dick 
Combs that he was dealing with in trying to kill his brother. 
Upon that word of Youtsey, believing what he said, Mr. 
Goebel had Dick Combs arrested, but Youtsey says : " I was 
mistaken about that. Hockersmith was the man. I am re- 



322 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

sponsible for Dick Combs' indictment and arrest. I told 
them it was Dick Combs but it turned out to be Hockersmith." 
So, when they charged in the indictment here that Dick 
Combs and myself were in a conspiracy to bring about the 
death of Senator Goebel, that much more of their indictment 
is wrong. 

Now, let us see with whom the prosecution has confessed, 
by its conduct, that I was in no conspiracy. I was in no 
conspiracy with Silas Jones, none with Sutton, none with 
Noakes, none with Hazelipp ; because they were never indicted. 
I was in none with Captain Davis, none with Berry Howard, 
none with Green Golden, none with Wharton Golden and 
Bill Culton, if they can be believed ; none with Captain Gar- 
nett D. Ripley, none with Dick Combs. Then let us see whom 
I was in a conspiracy with, if I was in a conspiracy with 
anybody. Taking these men from the list, whom else do we 
have? They say that Taylor conspired with Jim Howard 
and Henry Youtsey, and these other men, to bring about the 
death of Senator Goebel. I am here to say to you that I do 
not know anything about that. Taylor may have done it and 
he may not have done it. I am not here to answer for the 
sins of Governor Taylor, if he has any sins. He can do 
that for himself. I don't know whom he conspired with, 
whether anybody, but, as far as I am individually concerned, 
I expect to show you that I did not conspire with anybody. 
They charge in this indictment here that I procured five men 
to shoot and murder Senator Goebel, and they said at that 
time that there were unknown men acting with these men, but 
that bugaboo of an unknown quantity has been cast into the 
mist. That bugaboo of an unknown man whom the country 
was taught to believe must have been some mountain man, who 
came down with that mountain crowd, has been cast away; 
because, if the prosecution can be relied upon, no man who 
came in that mountain crowd had aught to do with the firing 
of the shot that resulted in the death of Senator Goebel. 
None was present, aiding, or sheltering those who did fire it. 
But five men have been indicted as principals : Holland Whit- 
taker, who lives in Butler County ; " Tallow Dick " Combs, 
who had nothing to do with the mountain crowd and 



mountain:eers innocent 323 

did not come with it ; Henry E. Youtsey, who lived up here in 
the northern part of this state in the county of Campbell, 
and who says he had nothing to do with the mountain crowd, 
and James Howard, who did not come with the mountain 
crowd, and had nothing to do with it, if the position of the 
prosecution can be relied upon ; because they say that he came 
to Frankfort on the very day that Senator Goebel was killed, 
within less than an hour of the murder. The mountain 
crowd came five days before. But for a long time this coun- 
try was taught to believe that the mountain crowd killed 
Senator Goebel, and that I brought the mountain crowd to 
Frankfort, and that, therefore, I am responsible for what the 
mountain crowd did ; because they said that the unknown 
men in the indictment certainly embraced some of the moun- 
tain crowd. But that ghost of an unknown man, if the prose- 
cution can be relied upon, has been taken out of the case ; 
for, they now say there was no unknown man about it. They 
say jiow that the unknown man had nothing to do with it; 
that he was, and is, a mere will-o'-the-wisp, without either 
a local habitation or a name. If they can be relied upon, it 
was Jim Howard and Henry Youtsey, who fired the fatal 
shot that resulted in the death of Senator Goebel, and nobody 
else was about, or had anything to do with-it, because Yout- 
sey says he said to Howard : " Do you want to see the gov- 
ernor," and Howard said to Youtsey : " I don't want to see 
anybody," and Youtsey says there was nobody in the hallway, 
and Youtsey said to Howard : " If you see anybody coming, 
step under the stairway." Then nobody was in or about 
the office of the secretary of state, or the hallway, and no- 
body had anything to do with the killing of Mr. Goebel except 
Jim Howard and Youtsey, if the position of the prosecution 
can now be relied upon, and, therefore, all this bugaboo about 
the mountain crowd, or any of them killing Senator Goebel, 
vanishes into vapor. Therefore, none of this conduct on the 
part of the mountain crowd, none of this wild speech on the 
part of the mountain crowd, resulted in the death of Senator 
Goebel ; because no man who came with that mountain crowd 
has ever been accused by the prosecution of firing the fatal 
shot, or being present, aiding and abetting those who did fire 



324 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

it. Another distinct and independent set of men have been 
indicted as heretofore referred to, and all this abuse of the 
mountaineers, about their wearing cottonade pants and buckeye 
hats, and all this alleged shooting and all this alleged threat- 
ening speech on their part, have been dragged into this case 
for a purpose, and that purpose is to prejudice you against me; 
because I did bring the mountain crowd to Frankfort, and I 
will take up later and explain to you, gentlemen, my motives 
for bringing that mountain crowd. But if the prosecution can 
now be relied upon, no member of that mountain crowd fired 
the fatal shot, or was present aiding or abetting those who 
did fire the fatal shot that resulted in the death of Senator 
Goebel; therefore, if they constituted a part of the alleged 
conspiracy to murder Mr. Goebel, as is maintained by the 
prosecution, that conspiracy resulted in nothing, because a 
different set of men, living in other portions of the state, have 
been indicted, charged with firing the fatal shot. 

But I am wandering just a bit. I say they have charged 
me with procuring Holland Whittaker, Dick Combs, Henry E. 
Youtsey, Berry Howard and Jim Howard to fire the shot 
that resulted in the death of Senator Goebel, none of 
whom came with the mountain crowd. That is what they 
charge me with. Jf I did procure those men to shoot Senator 
Goebel, I am guilty. If I did not procure those men to kill 
Senator Goebel, then I am not guilty, although the mountain 
crowd came to Frankfort, and although the militia was called 
out, and although there was a great deal of excited speech and 
a great deal of reckless talk done at Frankfort, during those 
stormy times. I say if I procured Jim Howard, Henry Yout- 
sey, Dick Combs, Holland Whittaker or Berry Howard to shoot 
or kill Senator Goebel, then I am guilty, whether the moun- 
tain crowd came to Frankfort or not ; but if I did not procure 
Jim Howard, Henry Youtsey, Dick Combs or Holland Whit- 
taker or Berry Howard to shoot or kill Senator Goebel, then 
I could not be guilty, although the mountain crowd did come 
to Frankfort, and although the militia zvas called out. I 
think that is clear. 

Now, let us see : Did I procure Dick Combs to shoot and 
murder Mr. Goebel? What is the testimony In this case? 



CONSPIRED WITH NO ONE 325 

Dr. Prewitt told you that Dick Combs was in the adjutant 
general's office when the fatal shot was fired. The testimony 
in this case is, that I never laid eyes on Dick Combs until after 
Dick Combs was arrested and lodged in the Franklin County 
jail, charged with this crime, the same as myself. The testi- 
mony is that I never saw Dick Combs, had no communication 
with him, had nothing to do with him, and did not know 
him until after he was lodged in jail, after I had been lodged 
in jail. Therefore, the conclusion is inevitable that I did not 
conspire with, aid, counsel, advise or procure Dick Combs to 
shoot and murder Senator Goebel. There can be no doubt 
about that, and when they charge in this indictment that I 
procured Dick Combs to shoot and murder Senator Goebel, 
you know, and the whole country knows, that that much more 
of their indictment is wrong ; because I did not procure Dick 
Combs to shoot and murder Senator Goebel, if the testimony 
for the prosecution in this case can be relied upon. 

Now, let us see whom else : They charge in this indictment 
that I procured old man Holland Whittaker to shoot and mur- 
der Senator Goebel. That is charged in this indictment, but 
the testimony is, that I never saw old man Holland Whittaker 
until after he was arrested and I was arrested, and until we 
were carried to the Louisville jail for safe-keeping after Sena- 
tor Goebel had been shot. That is the testimony in this case. 
There is nothing in the whole record to contradict it. So if 
the testimony can be relied upori, I certainly did not procure 
Holland Whittaker to shoot and murder Senator Goebel. And 
besides that, the prosecution now says that Holland Whittaker 
had nothing to do with the killing of Goebel. 

Then they charge me in this indictment with procuring 
old man Berry Howard to murder Senator Goebel. That is 
what they charge me with and that is what you, gentlemen, are 
trying me for. That is the thing upon which you are asked 
to take from me my life by these able gentlemen in their 
excited arguments. What is the testimony in this case? The 
testimony in this case is, that I had scarcely met Berry How- 
ard before Senator Goebel was killed; that I had had no 
communication with him ; that I had had no conference with 
him; that I did not procure him to do anything, and besides 



326 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

that, Berry Howard has been acquitted of the charge of having 
fired the shot, or of being present, aiding, or abetting those 
who did fire the fatal shot that resulted in the death of Sena- 
tor Goebel. Then three out of the five named persons I 
could not be guilty with. I was not guilty with " Tallow 
Dick " Combs. I did not know " Tallow Dick " Combs, and 
*' Tallow Dick " Combs has been turned loose and has had his 
liberty for nearly three years. I could not be guilty with old 
man Holland Whittaker, I did not know him, and he has been 
given his liberty for nearly three years. I could not have 
been guilty with Berry Howard, because Berry Howard has 
been acquitted by a jury of his country. Then if I am guilty 
at all, I must be guilty in procuring either Jim Howard or 
Henry E. Youtsey to shoot and murder Senatoi- Goebel. I 
couldn't be guilty with these other men. Then, I repeat, if 
I am guilty at all, I must be guilty of procuring either Jim 
Howard or Henry E. Youtsey to fire the fatal shot that re- 
sulted in the death of Senator Goebel. There can be no 
escape from that. 

Now, did I procure Jim Howard to fire the fatal shot that 
resulted in the death of Senator Goebel? These men in their 
arguments here stated that Jim Howard was the man behind 
the gun ; that Jim Howard was the man who pulled the trig- 
ger and fired the fatal shot. Did I procure Jim Howard to 
fire the shot that resulted in the death of Senator Goe- 
bel? If I did, I am guilty. If I did not, then as far as Jim 
Howard is concerned, I am not guilty. 

What is the testimony in this case? Think over it. We 
have gone through this trial for some four weeks. Think 
over the testimony that has been introduced on the witness- 
stand in this case and point to a single witness on the part of 
the prosecution or the defense that said I ever even knew Jim 
Howard at the time Senator Goebel was shot on the thirtieth 
of January, or prior thereto. If you will show me a witness 
in the whole case who has sworn from this witness-stand 
that I even Icnew Jim Howard, I will agree right now that 
you, gentlemen, shall bring in a verdict of guilty. Show it, 
and bring in your verdict. There is not a man in all the 
record of this case, from the first witness to the last, who 



DID NOT KNOW HOWARD 327 

has testified that I even knew Jim Howard on the thirtieth of 
January, 1900. Point it out, Mr. Franklin, and then ask 
a verdict of guihy at the hands of the jury; point it out, and 
I will agree that you find me guilty. If the testimony in this 
case can be relied upon, I did not know Jim Howard at the 
time Senator Goebel was killed. If the testimony in this 
case can be believed, 1 never had any communication with 
Jim Howard before Senator Goebel was killed. Howard tells 
you from the witness-stand in this case that he did not know 
me at the time Senator Goebel was killed, and never met 
me until after we had both been transferred to Louisville, 
after our first trials, for safe-keeping. I testified to that fact 
myself, and since Colonel Campbell has said that I am one 
of the ablest of the star-witnesses on the part of the prosecu- 
tion, certainly I have a right to refer to my own testimony. 
Mr. Howard says he never saw me until he met me at Louis- 
ville after he had been convicted and after I had had a trial. I 
testified to the same thing, and there is no conflicting proof. 
There is not a syllable of proof on the part of the prosecution 
to show anything to the contrary. Then, so far as Jim How- 
ard is concerned, I certainly did not conspire with Jim Howard 
to bring about the death of Senator Goebel, if the testimony 
in this case can be believed or relied upon. Is not that true? 
The only testimony in the whole of this record which would 
tend to show, even by indirection, that I had anything to do 
with Jim Howard, is the testimony of Frank Cecil. He says 
he had a talk with me on the twenty-ninth of January in my 
office ; that he casually dropped into my office on that night and 
that I said to him that a man was coming to Frankfort to- 
morrow to kill Senator Goebel. Frank Cecil was asked if he 
knew that Jim Howard was going to be in Frankfort, and he 
said he did not. So, taking Cecil's statement for it, I did not 
know Howard was going to be in Frankfort. I did not 
know anything about Jim Howard's going to fire the shot 
that killed Senator Goebel. Even Youtsey says that as far as 
he knew, I did not know Jim Howard, and I had had no 
connection with Jim Howard. Youtsey's testimony is that I 
agreed to be out of my office. He doesn't say that I agreed to 
be out of my office for the purpose of Jim Howard's killing 



328 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

Goebel. He doesn't say that I had any knowledge that Taylor 
had written to Jim Howard, and that Jim Howard was going 
to be in Frankfort. Youtsey never said anything about that. 
Then if the testimony of the prosecution can be believed, if the 
testimony in this case is going to have any credence, I did 
not know Jim Howard ; I had no communication with Jim 
Howard until after Senator Goebel had been killed. Then, 
gentlemen, I could not be guilty, so far as the proof in this 
case is concerned, of conspiring with Jim Howard to bring 
about the death of Senator Goebel, because the testimony is 
that I did not know him ; the testimony is that I had no com- 
munication with him, and had nothing to do with him. 
Cecil said that he did not know that Jim Howard was going 
to be in Frankfort on the day that Senator Goebel was 
going to be killed. 

You can not go outside of the record and say " there is no 
testimony showing Powers knew Jim Howard ; there is no tes- 
timony showing he had any communication with Jim Howard, 
but we believe that he did." Oh, no, men, you can not do 
that! You have sworn that you would not do that. You 
have sworn that you would try this case according to the law 
and the testimony. You have sworn that you would not 
supply any of the testimony either for the Commonwealth 
or for the defense. Then you can not say, " It is more than 
likely true that you did know Jim Howard and we are going 
to believe it anyway." You can not do that, and you are not 
going to do that. If you are going to do that, this trial is a 
farce ; if you are going to do that, there was no necessity for 
introducing any testimony in this case. If you are going to 
supply the testimony for the prosecution, let us do away with 
the formalities of a trial and let you settle it all. Read the 
indictment and find me guilty. You have sworn that you 
would try this case from the law and from the testimony. 

All that Cecil's testimony could mean, if it be true, is that 
I had knowledge that Senator Goebel was going to be killed. 
I say, if true. So if every sentence and syllable he uttered is 
absolutely true it could not mean any more than that I had 
knowledge that Mr. Goebel was to be killed, and that is not 
enough. The court has not told you in these instructions that 



CECIL'S TESTIMONY UNTRUE 329 

if I had knowledge that Mr. Goebel was to be killed you 
should find me guilty. No ! That has never been the law 
in this country. Mere knowledge that a man is going to be 
killed does not connect the man who has the knowledge. The 
Court has not said, if I had knowledge of the matter, you 
should find me guilty; but on the contrary, he says if I ad- 
vised, counseled or procured some one to shoot Senator Goe- 
bel, in that event I am guilty. Suppose you should be down 
here on the streets of Georgetown and a man should pass 
you hastily and say to you, " I propose to shoot to death that 
man down on the street corner," and he goes and shoots him 
to death. You were down there and you heard what he said 
and you knew he was going to do it, you had knowledge of it ; 
but would anybody contend that you were guilty, simply be- 
cause you had knowledge that the man was going to be shot 
down in the streets of Georgetown? No. That would make 
all eye-witnesses to the crime participants in it. Isn't that 
true? That has never been the law in this country — it never 
will be. And, taking everything that Cecil has said as true, 
it does not show any connection between Jim Howard and 
myself. But let me repeat again that Cecil's story is a base 
fabrication, sworn to for immunity. 

Then, if the testimony can be relied upon, I was in no 
conspiracy with Jim Howard to bring about the death of 
Senator Goebel. If every word that Cecil testified to be 
true, — and it is not true, and may the God in heaven strike me 
dead this minute if I said to him : " There is a man coming 
to-morrow to kill Goebel," or that I tried to get him to kill 
Mr. Goebel, — but supposing every word that Cecil testified 
to was true, it makes no connection between me and the as- 
sassination of Mr. Goebel, or me and James B. Howard. 
Cecil said he did not know Howard was coming to Frankfort, 
and that all I said to him about the matter was that there 
was a man coming to-morrow and if he comes he will cer- 
tainly kill Goebel. Cecil said that I had my murderous talk 
with him when I was alone ; that he was very much terri- 
fied when, he says, I expressed to him a desire for blood ; 
that his whole nature rebelled against it and revolted at it. 
He said that I must have realized that I had made a mistake 



330 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

in approaching him on such a subject; for, he says, I said to 
him to never mention what I had said to him ; although he 
has me, within the next five or ten minutes, getting another 
man to approach him on the same subject and asking him 
what he (Cecil) "thought about what Powers had said to 
him," and offering him two thousand five hundred dollars to 
kill Mr. Goebel. He says that this occurred in ten minutes 
after I had told him that there was a man coming to Frank- 
fort to-morrow to kill Goebel. If there was a man coming to 
Frankfort on the following day to kill Goebel, why should I 
have Cecil offered two thousand five hundred dollars for doing 
the work? Answer me that, gentlemen. And if Cecil and 
others would waylay and rob a man of two thousand one hun- 
dred dollars, don't you believe that he would kill a man for 
two thousand five hundred dollars, if it had been offered him? 
If he would detain a woman against her will for the purpose 
of having carnal knowledge with her, what crime would he 
not commit? As God is my judge, I never said to Cecil 
what he says I did. May God in heaven paralyze my speech, 
if such be true. The law says that a man who is base enough 
to enter into a conspiracy to murder his fellow man is in- 
famous enough to swear himself out if he can, by swearing 
others in. The law says that you can not believe what he 
says unless his testimony is corroborated. Cecil's testimony 
is not corroborated, but it is contradicted. If I had wanted 
to have testified falsely, I would have denied Cecil's being at 
my office at all that night. I knew that it was beyond the 
power of the prosecution to contradict me in that, except by 
Cecil's own testimony. But if all that Cecil testified to be 
true, which it is not, it does not even remotely connect Jim 
Howard and myself with the murder of Mr. Goebel. 

Then four of the five men named as principals, that you, 
Mr. Franklin, charge me with procuring to shoot and murder 
Senator Goebel, if the testimony can be relied upon, I cer- 
tainly did not procure. I did not know Dick Combs; I did 
not know Holland Whittaker ; I did not know Jim Howard ; 
and Berry Howard has been acquitted. Then four of the five 
men that I am charged in this indictment with procuring to 
shoot and murder Senator Goebel, I did not know and had 



DID NOT PROCURE YOUTSEY 331 

no connection with, if the testimony of the prosecution can be 
relied upon or be beUeved. I am not guilty with any unknown 
man, because they have eliminated the unknown man from 
this case. The unknown man has nothing to do with it. 
Then if I am guilty at all of procuring anybody to shoot and 
murder Mr. Goebel, I must be guilty of procuring Henry E. 
Youtsey to shoot and murder him. I am not guilty as to the 
other four named principals in this case. I am guilty with 
no unknown man, because there is no unknown man, and if I 
am guilty at all, I must be guilty of procuring Henry E. 
Youtsey to shoot Senator Goebel. Is not that true, men? 

Now, am I guilty with Henry E. Youtsey? As I said a 
moment ago, if I am guilty of procuring anybody to murder 
Senator Goebel it must be Henry E. Youtsey, and what does 
the testimony show as to that particular man? We must 
rely upon the testimony, and what is the testimony in this 
case? The testimony, both upon the side of the prosecution 
and upon the side of the defense, is that I never met Henry 
E. Youtsey until the first day of January, 1900, just thirty days 
before Senator Goebel was shot and killed. If the testimony 
for the prosecution in this case can be relied upon, Youtsey 
never spoke to me or to my brother relative to the shooting of 
Senator Goebel until the twenty-ninth day of January, one 
day before Senator Goebel came to his death. That is the 
testimony. You, gentlemen, no doubt have met with men with 
whom you have had an intimate acquaintance. You, no doubt, 
have met men whom you could trust. You, no doubt, have 
met men you would not trust, but I want to ask you if you ever 
met a man in all your life and within thirty days afterward, 
without knowing anything further of him (and that is the 
testimony in this case as far as Youtsey and myself are con- 
cerned) without having any intimate relationship with him — 
I want to ask you if you ever took such a man into your 
bosom and revealed to him the secrets of your heart? Did 
you ever do it, Mr. Layson? I am sure you never did. Did 
you ever take a man whom you just happened to meet aside 
within thirty days afterward and reveal to him your plans 
for money-making, and the property you expected to acquire, 
and the marital relationships that you desired to see your sons 



332 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

and daughters enter into? Did you ever do it? I can say 
for you that you never did. Did you ever become a candi- 
date for any office elective by the voters of a county, district 
or state? And if you ever did, did you ever take a casual 
voter aside and reveal to him the exact plans you expected 
to adopt to win the race, and how you would defeat your 
opponents, A, B and C, but that they would not know anything 
about it until they were defeated? Did you ever commit any 
crime in your life? If you ever did, I want to ask you if 
you ever took some unknown man into your bosom and asked 
him to go with you to help you commit that crime? 

(Court here adjourned for the day. The next morning I 
continued my argument.) 

Gentlemen: When the court adjourned last night we were 
discussing Youtsey, but I want to go back and say one word 
more with reference to Howard, before I take up the Youtsey 
end of it. 

You will remember that Colonel Campbell, yesterday after- 
noon, asked the defense why it was that they did not call 
to the witness-stand and introduce Mr. Paynter and why 
they did not call and introduce J. B. Matthews. He said 
that those points of Cecil's testimony were corroborated by 
the fact that we had it in our power to produce these men, 
and that we failed to do it. Let us look at that a minute, 
gentlemen. Colonel Campbell has claimed that I am one 
of the chief star-witnesses for the prosecution. If I am, I 
certainly have not tried to shield myself, but I have told the 
whole truth. There can be no other inference drawn. Again, 
Cecil is one of the men whose testimony this honorable court 
has told you could not be believed unless corroborated by 
other testimony. The Court has not told you that you can not 
believe my testimony unless it is corroborated by other testi- 
mony. So, then, it was incumbent upon the prosecution to 
introduce Mr. Paynter on this witness-stand to corroborate 
the testimony of Cecil before it is worthy of belief, if the 
Court has given the proper instructions to his jury. You re- 
member that, yesterday afternoon, Colonel Campbell said Mr. 
Paynter was one of the conspirators in this case, and said 



PAYNTER AND MATTHEWS 333 

in substance that if he ever got down in this neck of the 
woods, he would be called upon to stand trial for his alleged 
participation in this crime. How can you expect us to get 
witnesses here to testify in behalf of the defendant, when 
they are threatened with prosecution by the representatives 
of the Commonwealth, if they put in an appearance? These 
gentlemen well know that, as far as the defendant is con- 
cerned, he used his utmost power in trying to get Paynter to 
the witness-stand in this case. They well know that inter- 
rogatories were prepared for Mr. Paynter to be sent to the 
state of Kansas, and that, after he was found to be in Ken- 
tucky, a subpoena was issued for Mr. Paynter to appear on the 
witness-stand and testify for the defense. We failed to get 
him, but we are not responsible for it and not to blame, and 
even if we had got him here we could not have contradicted 
Cecil in the damaging part of his alleged conversation with 
me, if Cecil can be believed, because Cecil said that Paynter 
was not present at that time and that I never, in Paynter's 
presence, said anything about killing Goebel or doing other 
violence ; that all he knew about Paynter was that Paynter 
was in my office on the night of the twenty-ninth, when Cecil 
says he came there. 

And they say to us, "Why didn't you call J. B. Matthews?" 
Cecil says he had a talk with J. B. Matthews after he left 
your office and had the talk with you. They say, why don't 
you call J. B. Matthews? They assert that he is my con- 
fidential man, my detective. If Mr. J. B. Matthews can be 
believed he was also the detective for the prosecution in this 
case. If Mr. Franklin can be relied upon he was also a de- 
tective for the prosecution in this case, for don't you remember 
that Mr. Franklin put to R. N. Miller the question : *' Did you 
not say to J. B. Matthews up at Indianapolis some time ago 
that you had a talk with W. H. Culton and that he said that 
J. L. Powers seemed to be intimate with Henry Youtsey?" 
You remember that question and you remember that Mr. 
Franklin was holding in his hand a large volume of written 
statements that must have been prepared by J. B. Matthews. 
Miller says he did not say it; but, judging from all appearances 
and the testimony in the case, J. B. Matthews must have been 



334 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

the confidential man and the detective for the prosecution. 
Again, as I say, why the necessity of the defense calling J. B. 
Matthews, so far as the Cecil end of it is concerned? The law 
says you can not believe anything Cecil says, unless the testi- 
mony is corroborated by others. That is the law, and there 
is no doubt about that. Then if that be true, and it is true, 
why is it that the prosecution did not call Matthews to the 
witness-stand and show by him, if true, that he did on the 
Monday night before Goebel wa% killed have a conversation 
with Cecil in the reception-room between the private office 
of the secretary of state and the governor's office? 

Now, let us continue the Youtsey end of it. I said to you 
last night that I was indicted and charged with procuring 
five men to shoot and murder Senator Goebel : Holland Whit- 
taker, Dick Combs, Henry E. Youtsey, Jim Howard, Berry 
Howard. I showed you last night that I did not know Holland 
Whittaker. I showed you last night that I did not know 
Dick Combs, and that I did not know Jim Howard, and that 
Berry Howard had been acquitted. Then if I am guilty at 
all, I must have procured Henry E. Youtsey to shoot and kill 
Senator Goebel. I said to you further that the testimony 
in this case shows that I only knew Henry E. Youtsey about 
a month before Senator Goebel was killed. The testimony 
is that I was sworn in before him as a notary public, took 
the oath of office as secretary of state ; that he wa's the 
only notary public in the building, and that I had a casual 
speaking acquaintance with him after that time until the 
twenty-seventh day of January, igoo. You know they charge 
that I was implicated in getting Youtsey to fire the shot 
from my office, and you know I asked you last night that 
if you wanted to kill some of your neighbors, if you wanted 
to stoop to the dastardly method of assassination in order 
to get rid of them, if " you would come down to some of these 
stores and pick up a clerk with whom you have come in 
contact since you have been on this jury and take him inside 
and ask him to go into a conspiracy with you and get him 
to shoot and murder your neighbor? " You remember I asked 
you this question: would you take that clerk out to your 
home and put him down by your parlor window, or by the side 



YOUTSEY'S STORY ABSURD 335 

of the window of your office, if you had an office in George- 
town, and instruct him to shoot the man as he passed by your 
door? Why, gentlemen, such conduct as that would be the 
act of an idiot, the deed of a lunatic. You would not do that ; 
there is no question about that. Would I? If you wanted 
to have your neighbor assassinated, you certainly would not 
want it to be found out. Isn't that true? And if you 
had him shot from the windows of your office or home, would 
you not be publishing to the world the very thing that you 
most desired to keep secret? If you wanted your neighbor 
killed, your home would be the last place on earth that you 
would select as the place whence the fatal shot should be 
fired. You know that, and if you wanted your neighbor 
killed, the clerk in the store would be the last man on earth 
you would go to if you were hunting a man to commit murder. 
Is not that true? If you wanted your neighbor killed, would 
not you go to some man you had seen trusted and tried, some 
man with whom you could risk your very life? And wouldn't 
your home or your office be the last place on earth from 
which you would have the fatal shot fired? Is not that true, 
men? And if I had wanted Senator Goebel killed, or had had 
any interest in the killing of Mr. Goebel, do you think I 
would go to an unknown man like Henry E. Youtsey, a man 
of whom I knew absolutely nothing — nothing of his family, 
nothing of his trustworthiness, nothing of him — and agree 
with him that he could fire the fatal shot from my office with 
three other men that I had not known up to that 
time, namely, Jim Howard, Holland Whittaker and Dick 
Combs, or any one of them ? If I had wanted Senator Goebel 
killed, would not I have gone to some man who had stood 
by me in the past, some man I knew I could rely upon, some 
man I had seen trusted and tried? And if I wanted him 
killed, would not my office have been the last place on earth 
from which I would agree that the fatal shot should be fired? 
Would not I have known that I was advertising to the world 
the very thing that I would have desired to keep a secret? 
Apply common sense to this matter. The best sort of sense 
a man ever had is common sense. If Youtsey can be be- 
lieved, if his testimony can be relied upon, he never spoke 



Zz^ MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

to me about the killing of Senator Goebel until the twenty- 
ninth of January, 1900, one day before Senator Goebel came to 
his death. That i's the testimony of Henry E. Youtsey. That 
is the testimony of the Commonwealth witnesses. I say, if the 
testimony of the Commonwealth can be relied upon, Henry 
Youtsey never spoke to myself or my brother concerning 
the death of Senator Goebel until the day before Senator 
Goebel was killed. If the testimony of Henry E. Youtsey 
can be relied upon, I did not know anything about his plans 
to kill Senator Goebel with Dr. Johnson, or with Hocker- 
smith. I did not know anything about Youtsey's wanting to 
get into my office, or that he had a slick scheme to kill Goebel 
from my office, because Culton tells you he never did tell 
me anything about that. The testimony is, that Youtsey 
never told me anything about his murderous plots prior to 
January twenty-ninth. I did not know that he was trying 
to get three hundred dollars from Walter Day to kill Senator 
Goebel. There is no testimony in this record showing a 
thing of that character, and such a thing never did exist. 
Nothing, so far as proof in this case is concerned, reveals 
that I knew anything about Youtsey's wanting to get Mastin's 
gun, and about Youtsey's ordering cartridges from Cincinnati 
to kill Mr. Goebel with, and about his getting Hockersmith 
or Dr. Johnson in my office. 

I knew nothing about Youtsey and Johnson, or Youtsey 
and Hockersmith, at any time, searching the Executive Build- 
ing over to find a suitable place from which to fire the shot. 
I knew nothing about his and Johnson's plan for the man who 
did fire the fatal shot to run through the basement. I knew 
nothing about his dreaming that he saw some of the mountain 
men kill Goebel ; nothing about his and Johnson's nitrogly- 
cerin scheme to kill Goebel in his room in the Capital Hotel ; 
nothing about his saying to Captain Ricketts that his (Yout- 
sey's) job depended on Goebel's death; nothing about his 
making a proposition to the mountain men to kill Goebel ; I 
knew nothing about his alleged talk with Taylor about Goe- 
bel's death. 

Remember, gentlemen, that I knew none of these things, 
and that during these times I was in the mountains of Ken- 



THE KEY TO MY OFFICE 337 

tucky. I left Frankfort on the twelfth of January and re- 
turned the seventeenth, left again on the twentieth and did not 
get back until the twenty-fifth. If the testimony for the Com- 
monwealth can be relied upon, I did not know any of these 
things and I did not know anything about the proposed plan 
to kill Senator Goebel until the twenty-ninth of January, 
1900, if their own testimony can be believed. Then there is no 
necessity to go back to times prior to the twenty-ninth of 
January in this discussion. Youtsey said I did not know, 
and that my brother did not know anything prior to that 
time. He says that on the morning of the twenty-ninth, the 
Monday before Mr. Goebel was killed on Tuesday, that 
he went into my private office ; that he found my brother 
sitting there at a desk, and he said to my brother — (he says 
he had never met my brother, never had any introduction 
to him. That is his testimony.) — Youtsey gaid he went up 
to my brother and said to him : " See here, I want a key to 
your brother's office, with which to put some negroes in there 
to kill Senator Goebel." What do you think of this story? 
What do you think of Youtsey's going to my brother, an un- 
known man, and asking for a key to his brother's office for 
the purpose of committing murder from there? What do you 
think of it, men? He says my brother — ^I presume for the 
purpose of having some one see him give Youtsey the key 
to my office — got up and walked out into the hallway of the 
Executive Building, a convenient place for Wharton Golden 
to see the transfer of the key by my brother to Henry E. 
Youtsey. What do you think of it? That is what Golden 
said, and that is what Youtsey said. Now, let us see what 
else Golden says on that matter. Golden says he saw my 
brother give Youtsey a wrong key to that office, and Youtsey 
says it was the wrong key. I have never understood the force 
of that wrong key proposition until it was explained yes- 
terday. I had often wondered why it was that, if my brother 
was in the conspiracy to kill Senator Goebel, and my brother 
was willing for it to be done, why, instead of giving Youtsey 
the wrong key to that office to get in there with, he did 
not give him the right key. It has always been a mystery 
to me until the fertile brain of Colonel Hendrick came on 



338 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

the scene yesterday and made it as clear as muddy water. 
He said that the reason was that my brother John was 
waiting for Jim Howard to get down to Frankfort and that 
he did not want Youtsey to kill Goebel. Why did he not 
want Youtsey to kill him, if he and I are implicated with 
Youtsey as claimed? Why did he want to delay the matter, 
and have another man, unknown to him, kill Goebel? Why 
should my brother be so " choicy " between unknown assassins? 
There is no testimony in this case of that character until that 
testimony was given in this case by the able attorney, Mr. 
Hendrick. I put the assertion on the part of Mr, Hendrick 
that my brother wanted either Youtsey or Howard to kill 
Goebel, on a par with another assertion he made yesterday. 
He made the statement " that no woman knew any law, that 
no woman had the capacity to learn any law." I want to enter 
in behalf of the ladies of our land a special and general 
denial to that slanderous charge. 

Golden says he saw my brother give Youtsey a wrong key 
to the office, and directly my brother came to him in the hall- 
way of the Executive Building and said : " We have two ne- 
groes here this morning to kill Goebel, 'Tallow Dick' Combs 
and Hockersmith," and Golden says : " That must not be 
done." My brother said to Golden, if Golden can be relied 
upon : " You need not be alarmed, I gave him the wrong 
key." He asked my brother who that fellow was to whom 
he gave the key. My brother did not know. Golden hied 
himself away after saying that it must not be done, and went 
over to Collier's office to get General Collier to put a stop to 
it. My brother went with him and, failing to find General 
Collier, he said they came over to the Capital Hotel ; and 
that I saw my brother and Golden in the hallway and said 
to Golden : " We can not go to Louisville to-day." And we all 
went back to the Executive Building. Golden says we did 
not talk about what had happened between my brother and 
Youtsey on the way back; he did not know whether it had 
been decided to kill Goebel or not. He said he never talked 
to anybody about it that day and he never talked to anybody 
until long after Senator Goebel had been killed. In fact, he 
never talked to anybody about it until he was in the arms 



WHY I WAS AT THE HOTEL 339 

of his savior, Colonel Thomas C. Campbell, going to Cin- 
cinnati to make a confession. This, gentlemen, is the testi- 
mony of Wharton Golden and Youtsey about the alleged 
transaction of the key. 

Now, let us look into that a little. Let us see what bearing 
it has upon the case. Let us connect the statements of Gold- 
en and Youtsey with the facts that are not disputed, and 
see whether the statements of Golden and Youtsey are in 
harmony with these facts. Golden and Youtsey are either 
testifying to the truth or they are testifying to a lie. My 
brother either gave Youtsey the key to my office or he did not 
give him the key. Golden tells you that no one was present 
when my brother gave Youtsey the second key to that office, 
and that I was not present when the first key was delivered. 
Youtsey says there never was but one delivery and that 
was the wrong key, and that I was not present. Golden tells 
you that I was five or six steps in advance of my brother 
and Youtsey, and that I was going on toward my office, and 
that I did not see nor hear the alleged transaction about the 
second key. You see, gentlemen, he puts it out of my power 
to contradict him on that point ; but Youtsey does contradict 
him. He says that he never got any second key. My brother 
is not here as a witness. The proof in this case, gentlemen, 
is that early on Monday morning I went to the Capital Hotel 
at Frankfort, for the purpose of making arrangements to send 
the mountain men back home. That I was over at the Capital 
Hotel there is no doubt ; that fact is proven both by the testi- 
mony of the Commonwealth and by that of the defense. The 
difference in the contention of the prosecution and the defense 
is as to why I was there. The prosecution tries to make 
it appear that I was over there trying to effect some part of the 
alleged conspiracy to kill Senator Goebel. Golden, you re- 
member, testifies that early on the Monday morning I said 
to him that I was trying to make arrangements to get off to 
Louisville ; and that I had to go over to the Capital Hotel 
before I could make those arrangements ; and that he showed 
me a letter from John H. Wilson, who was at Louisville, 
saying for him to come to Louisville. My testimony and 
Golden's differ on that point. 



340 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

At any rate, Golden knew that I was over at the Capital 
Hotel on some business; and that, if I could get that business 
done, I intended to go to Louisville on that early morning 
train. And he says that a black-mustached man came to him 
and my brother in the hallway of the Executive Building and 
said something to my brother ; that he did not know what he 
said, but my brother came to him in a few minutes and said 
that we had two negroes here to kill Goebel, and that when 
he asked Jolxn Powers who the black-headed, black-mustached 
man was, my brother said that he did not know who he 
was. Golden says that he went around to the Agricultural 
office to see General Collier to tell him about the murder 
going to be done, and to protest against it. Golden, who 
laughed and, when he heard that Goebel was killed, said 
that it was a " damn good thing " and he was glad of it — 
Golden, who was at all times willing, according to his own tes- 
timony, to go up into the legislative halls and kill ofif enough 
Democrats to make a Republican majority — that fiend, who, 
according to his own testimony, was ready upon all occasions 
to kill — for some unexplained and some unexplainable reason, 
upon this particular occasion was as smooth as a May morning, 
as harmless as a dove, as timid as a tomtit, as averse to the 
shedding of man's blood as a saint ; his soul was terrified 
at the thought ; his nature rebelled against it. That same 
Golden who, upon former occasions, and upon all occasions, 
was willing to walk over the blood of his dying victims; that 
same Golden who, on all after occasions, was willing to kill 
one or a dozen of those who opposed his supposed interests, 
as the necessities of the case might demand, the same Golden 
who, when he heard that Goebel had been assassinated, said 
that it was a damn good thing, was, upon this particular 
occasion, thrown into a moral tumult over the thought of 
harm befalling any one. 

Golden went to General Collier's office, he says, to see 
him about it, and my brother went with him also to see 
about it; for, what else could be his purpose? If Golden 
did tell the truth about what the black-headed, black-mustached 
man said to my brother, and if my brother did say that 
there were two negro men there to kill Senator Goebel 



FLAWS IN GOLDEN'S STORY 341 

and that it was going to be done that morning, and if my 
brother was in favor of it, as Golden said he was, I ask 
you why he would be going to General Collier's with Golden 
to put a stop to the thing? Why would he want the 
very thing stopped that, according to Golden, he was in 
favor of? Why should he? Ask yourselves that question. 
And why would he be giving the key to my office to a man 
he had never seen before? And if my brother was in favor 
of Senator Goebel's being killed, why would he have gone to 
General Collier with Golden to put a stop to it? Why would 
he not say to Golden that he ought to be killed, that it would 
put an end to the contest; that Golden would get his office 
and that we would all get our offices? 

That is why these gentlemen say he was killed. Their 
contention is that we thought it would put an end to every- 
thing and give us our offices. If that is true, gentlemen, why 
did not my brother present those reasons for having Goebel 
killed to that blood-thirsty Golden and secure his cooperation 
in the matter? Golden, according to his own statement, was 
an open advocate of murder. My brother knew Golden ; why 
did he not say : " See here, you are wrong about that ; it 
is to your interest and to the interest of us all that he be 
killed?" Why did he not do that, gentlemen, instead of 
going with Golden to General Collier's to put an end to the 
very thing with which he is charged? 

Why did they come to see me over at the Capital Hotel, 
to have the thing stopped? According to these, gentlemen, I 
would be the last man on earth to have stopped it. If 
there was a man in all that country, among all the people, 
who was in favor of violence and bloodshed and mur- 
der and assassination, it was I, if these gentlemen can be 
believed in what they assert. Golden says that on former 
occasions I said to him that Goebel ought to be killed 
and that I discussed a plan to kill him on the street, and in 
the Capital Hotel, and that I wanted to kill the members of 
the Legislature. Golden says he knew all that, and that I 
had personally discussed with him the contemplated acts of 
violence and murder. Then tell me why, gentlemen, he came 
to me to have a stop put to all these things? Why did he 



MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

I, the master conspirator, to put an end to violence? 
lie seek me among so many men whom he knew 
„..vx vviicf vvere at Frankfort, to put a stop to this proposed 
shedding of man's blood ? 

Golden had lived for some two years at Frankfort ; he knew 
a great many men ; he knew George Long. He says Long 
knew him well enough to recommend him for a position ; he 
knew the other men who had been elected on the state ticket. 
Why did he not go to some of these men and not to me, if he 
wanted to put a stop to this proposed murder? But he comes 
over to the Capital Hotel to see me, and when he gets there 
he does not even talk to me about it. He says that my 
brother said he would talk to me about it, and for him to let 
my brother do the talking. He says that he did that ; that my 
brother did come and talk to me and that I frowned while 
my brother was talking to me. What was I frowning about? 
He said that we all went back to the Executive Building; 
that we did not talk about the matter on the way over there ; 
that he never did say anything to me about the proposed 
killing of Senator Goebel by the two negroes. 

According to his testimony, gentlemen, he went back to the 
Executive Building without knowing what had been decided 
upon, as to the killing of Senator Goebel by the two negroes. 
He did not know whether it had been decided to kill him 
or not to kill him. And yet the fact remains, according to his 
own testimony, that at no time during that day did he ever 
mention to a living soul the proposed plan to kill Senator 
Goebel. He says that he went over to the Capital Hotel 
to have an end put to the proposed killing, and still he left 
the Capital Hotel without knowing what was going to be 
done about it. According to that fellow's own testimony he 
never did tell me about the proposed plan to kill Senator 
Goebel. If his own testimony can be believed he never told 
a living man on earth — until he told Colonel Campbell on his 
trip to Cincinnati, long after Goebel had been killed. 

Is that not a most remarkable case, gentlemen, that in 
the first place, he would come to one who, he had all reason 
to believe, if his own story can be credited, would not 
only not hear to his plans for peace and for humanity, and for 



WORTHLESS EVIDENCE 343 

law, and for order, but would severely reprimand him for his 
own lack of willingness to kill or to do anything else to hold 
the offices? Is it not remarkably strange that he did not go 
to some one else? And is it not stranger still that after 
going over to the Capital Hotel, and then not knowing what 
was going to be done about it, he made no inquiries concerning 
it, no revelations about what he had heard, from that good 
day until he went to Cincinnati some two months afterwards? 
Is it not strange that he breathed not to a living soul what he 
had heard on that Monday morning? Is it not strange that 
he never thought to tell any one until long after Goebel had 
been killed? 

Suppose, Mr. Wyatt, there was a conspiracy on foot to burn 
your home, and suppose somebody heard a minor conspirator 
talking to a major conspirator about burning your home, and 
he went to the minor conspirator and said : 

" See here, Mr. Wyatt is a respectable man in the com- 
munity. He has earned his home by hard labor and hard 
work and you must not burn his home," and suppose the 
fellow said to the minor conspirator : " Let's go and talk to 
the major conspirator about it;" and that he did do this and 
stood up close, but didn't know what was decided to be done. 
Suppose that he did not know whether it was decided to burn 
your home or not to burn it, and he went away with the two 
conspirators and did not know what was going to be done 
about it, and never mentioned to a single soul what was 
contemplated until long after your home had been burned ; 
and when it was burned, suppose the man alleged to be inter- 
ested in saving your home said : " It was a damned good thing, 
and I was glad of it." How much weight would you attach 
to his testimony to the effect that he was opposed to your 
home being burned? How much credence can you give to 
Golden's testimony that upon that morning he was opposed 
to the killing of Goebel and said that it must not be done, and 
when he did hear that Goebel was killed, said that " it was a 
damned good thing, and that he was glad of it?" 

It is true that I was over at the Capital Hotel on that 
Monday morning, and it is further true that I would not have 
been over there at the Capital Hotel unless I had had some 



344 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

business over there. I do not go to such places or go into 
men's rooms unless I have some business with them. These 
gentlemen intimate that I was there to see General Duke 
about some plan connected with the killing of Senator Goebel. 
You heard the speakers in this case yesterday intimate that 
General Duke was the head of everything. Then, if I was 
over there to see General Duke on anything connected with 
the conspiracy to kill Senator Goebel, General Duke is more 
guilty than I could possibly be, because he is an older man 
than I am ; he knows much more than I do about men and 
affairs ; and if you believe that General Duke was in the 
conspiracy to murder Senator Goebel, I want to ask you, Mr. 
Franklin, why you have sat here for over three years and 
witnessed vile conspirators strike down your party associate 
and go through this state unmolested, undisturbed, uncon- 
demned and unharmed? 

General Duke asks no governor of any adjacent Common- 
wealth to protect him from your courts, or you. You can get 
service on him seven days and seven nights out of every week 
of every year. You have not done that. The truth is, Mr, 
Franklin, you know General Duke had nothing to do with the 
conspiracy to murder Senator Goebel. Then if he did not 
have anything to do with it, I could not have been over at 
the Capital Hotel that morning for the purpose of seeing 
General Duke on anything connected with the conspiracy to 
murder Senator Goebel, and if I was not there to see General 
Duke on any such business, why was I there? 

What is the testimony in this case? Silas Jones, a witness 
for the prosecution, tells you that I agreed to get him a pass 
to go home. Milton Prosper, a witness for the defendant, 
tells you that on that Monday morning I agreed to get him 
a pass to go home, and that he did go home on the third of 
February. A. V. Hite tells you, and the deposition of 
Walter Day tells you, that he heard me telephoning from 
the auditor's office to Louisville, trying to get trans- 
portation for men to go home. And in this connection I 
desire to call attention to the depositions in this case. Why, 
it was said but yesterday by attorneys for the prosecution that 
the depositions did not mean very much ; that all there was 



WHAT I DID ON MONDAY 345 

to it, or about it, was that it was only an affidavit of the 
defendant. If I do not state the law accurately in this case, 
I want this honorable court to correct me. Those affidavits 
are the depositions of the absent witnesses. It is agreed that 
those witnesses, if present, would state as in this affidavit, 
if they were present here to testify. It is not my affidavit but 
the depositions of the witnesses, and if the prosecution 
had any doubt about those statements being true, they had 
a right to bring in other testimony to contradict the state- 
ment contained in those depositions and they had a right under 
the law to impeach the witnesses whose depositions you heard 
read here in your hearing. It is a fact^ known to the prose- 
cution in this case, that Walter Day has testified on both of 
my former trials and that he testifies to these various things. 
Walter Day tells you I was in the auditor's office telephoning 
down to Louisville, trying to make transportation arrange- 
ments to send the mountain men home. A. V. Hite, the 
depot agent at Frankfort, tells you that he received a tele- 
phonic communication from Louisville telling him that they 
had been called up by the secretary of state's office, and they 
wanted him to go to my office and say to me that they had 
made a rate of one cent a mile for the purpose of sending 
the mountain men home. The testimony in this case is that 
I called up the transportation agent at Louisville that morning 
and asked him to send the coaches on the afternoon train, and 
the testimony further is that I was sent for by Governor 
Bradley to come over to the adjutant general's office in the 
red brick building, and that Governor Bradley said to me 
that he understood that I was going to send the mountain men 
home. He said I must not send the men home. " There 
is going to be an argument before some of the contest com- 
mittee, and you must not send them all home," he said. The 
testimony is that, had it not been for Governor Bradley, those 
mountain men would have been sent home on Monday, the 
evening before the killing of Mr. Goebel on Tuesday morn- 
ing. They say : " Why didn't you call Governor Bradley 
to the witness stand and prove this by him?" I hurl it back 
into their faces and say : " Why didn't you call Governor 
Bradley to the witness-stand and contradict me in that asser- 



346 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

tion if I am swearing falsely about it?" I have sworn to it 
over three years. They have had Governor Bradley before the 
grand juries of the country, and they have had him as a wit- 
ness in the Ripley trial. They know Governor Bradley would 
not contradict me. Then I would have sent the mountain men 
home on Monday morning before Senator Goebel was killed, 
if I could have made the necessary transportation arrange- 
ments. The testimony is, that I would have sent them home 
on Monday afternoon had it not been for Governor Bradley. 
Now, the prosecution has always maintained that those moun- 
tain men were there, retained in Frankfort, for the purpose of 
killing Mr. Goebel. 

That is their contention. They assert they were retained 
in Frankfort, and that the culmination of the dastardly deed 
could not be reached without the presence of the mountain 
men ; that is their charge. Now, I want you to ask yourselves 
this question, when you get to your jury-room, when it be- 
comes your duty, under your oaths and the law, to pass upon 
my most sacred rights — • ask yourselves this question : " If 
that young man had known anything about the plan to kill 
Senator Goebel by the two negroes Monday morning, would 
he have been trying to send the men home on that Monday 
morning? If he had known anything about the plan to kill 
Senator Goebel on Tuesday morning, would he have been 
wanting to send those men home on Monday afternoon ; and 
the testimony is beyond dispute that I would have sent them 
home had it not been for Governor Bradley. I knew nothing 
of the plan to kill Goebel with the two negroes. I knew 
nothing of the alleged key transaction. I know nothing of 
this alleged conspiracy. I was not a party to it. 

Even Youtsey says that I did not know anything about the 
negroes being ready to kill Goebel, or anything about the 
alleged transaction of the wrong key between himself and my 
brother; for did not Youtsey say that after my brother had 
given him the wrong key to my office, I came to him 
and said : " My brother tells me that you have two negroes 
here to kill Goebel, and that he has given you the wrong 
key ; " and that I then said to him : " I can not give you the 
keys to that office, but it shall be at your disposal." Did 



CONTRADICTED BY YOUTSEY 347 

not Youtsey say that? If thi's statement be true about the 
transaction of the wrong key and the two negroes, I did not 
know anything of the alleged plan to kill Goebel with the 
negroes. 

On the former trials in this case, these gentlemen prosecut- 
ing me have, in their speech-making capacities, sworn to other 
juries until they were black in the face, that my trying to 
send the mountain men away on the Monday morning before 
the killing was a farce ; that the statements of witnesses to 
the effect that, if I could have made the necessary transporta- 
tion arrangements to have sent the mountain men home on 
that morning, I would have gone to Louisville to meet a 
young lady friend of mine, was all hypocrisy and deception. 
They said that the reason why I did not go to Louisville on 
that morning was, not because I failed to make transportation 
arrangements for the men, but because there was a failure 
in the plan to kill Goebel with the two negroes, from the 
fact that my brother had given Youtsey the wrong key. 
And on this theory of the case, they asked other juries to 
hang me. Now, Youtsey overturns it all and says that I did 
not know anything about the transaction of the wrong key, 
or the killing of Goebel by the two negroes at that time, but 
that I came to him later and told him what my brother had 
revealed to me. 

Golden says when he got to the Executive Building he 
saw my brother give Youtsey a second key to my office. 
Youtsey says that is not true. Youtsey says Golden lied 
about that. Youtsey says he got but one key to that 
office from my brother, or anybody else, and that was the 
wrong key, and that was before that time and on the same 
morning. But when we got back to the Executive Building 
on the morning of the day Senator Goebel was killed, Yout- 
sey says I came to him later on in the day, into his little 
private office, and said to him : " I understand you have two 
negroes here to kill Goebel ; John Powers told me that, and 
I want to know what about it." Youtsey says : " That is 
all true." And Youtsey testified that I then said to him 
that I could not loan him the key to that office — that he 
then went with me over to the glass door leading from the 



348 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

hallway into the private office of the secretary of state, and 
that here he said to me : " Now, you can put your foot down 
on this thing and stop it if you want to. All you have to 
do to keep Goebel from being killed is to put your foot down 
on it and it will not be done." But Youtsey says I didn't 
do that, but that I said : " I can not loan you the key to my 
office, but I will fix the door so that, at any time you want 
to, you can walk in and make yourself at home." He says 
that I unlocked and unbolted the little door leading into the 
private office from the hallway and left it in such a condition 
that anybody who would push against it, could open it ; and 
that he said for me to be away from my office and that I 
agreed to it. That is his testimony. This is the only con- 
versation, he says, I ever had with him relative to the killing 
of Senator Goebel. 

Now, let us see about that. If his testimony be true — but 
it is every word a sworn lie — but let us consider for the 
present that it is true, and look at it from that standpoint 
and see what it proves. If it be true, then I must have left 
the door ajar on that day for the purpose of having Mr. 
Goebel killed by Hockersmith and Dick Combs, after I had 
found out that they wanted to kill him. The testimony in 
this case is, that I did not then know Dick Combs, and that 
I had never seen or heard of Hockersmith. But, of course, 
a little thing like that could not shake the credence of the 
story told by this divine lover and server of truth — Henry 
E. Youtsey. Youtsey said I agreed to be away from my 
office and that he said to me that I had better be away; that 
he didn't want me mixed up in the matter, and he wanted 
me away and I agreed to be away. Can not you see his solici- 
tude for me? Then, if I agreed to be away from that office 
on January twenty-ninth for the purpose of having the negroes 
Hockersmith and "Tallow Dick" Combs kill Goebel, I cer- 
tainly lied to Youtsey, because I was in the office on that very 
day and I remained in it all the day, and that is the testimony 
iji this case. Then, when Youtsey said that I agreed to leave 
the hall door open for the purpose of having Goebel killed 
by Hockersmith and " Tallow Dick " Combs, and that I 
would also be away from that office, to let it be done from 



CAMPBELL'S CONTRADICTION 349 

there on that day, he certainly lied about it or I lied to him, 
one or the other, because I was in my office the whole of 
that day. Neither Hockersmith nor Dick Combs tried to 
kill Goebel from that office on that day. There is no proof 
of it in this record. Then I certainly did not leave that 
office-door ajar for the purpose of having Howard kill Goe- 
bel on the next day, for Youtsey says himself that he found 
it locked on the next day. 

But let us look into the matter a little further. Mr. Camp- 
bell said in his opening statement to this jury (I am sorry 
the colonel made a contrary statement in hi's speech) : " If 
Caleb Powers gave Youtsey the key, then Caleb Powers 
should give his life for the life so ruthlessly taken. If Caleb 
Powers did not give the key to Youtsey he has gone a long 
way toward helping the side of the defense in this case. I 
can not be fairer than that. I say, if Caleb Powers did not 
give the key to Youtsey, he has broken an important link 
in our chain of evidence. If he did give it, I believe, as I 
have to answer to the God above, that I can see no escape 
from the conclusion of his guilt. I am reminded that I say 
Caleb Powers. What I should have said was that Powers 
gave the key. John Powers got it from his brother and 
gave it to Youtsey." 

That is what Mr. Campbell said in his opening statement 
in this case. He said if he could not show that either myself 
or my brother gave Youtsey the key to that office for the 
purpose of having Goebel killed from that office, he would 
admit that a strong link in the testimony of the prosecution 
of this case had been broken. Let us see if the colonel has 
not almost admitted me not guilty. If the testimony of 
Youtsey and of every other man who has testified about it 
can be relied upon, then a strong link in the chain of testi- 
mony for the prosecution in this case has been broken, be- 
cause Youtsey says- he got but one key to that office, and 
that was the wrong key, on the Monday before the tragedy, 
and that he never got a right key from either myself or my 
brother. That is the testimony of Henry E. Youtsey. I tes- 
tified that he never did get a key from me. Youtsey says that 
he did not have any key on the day Goebel was killed, but 



350 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

that he went through an open door leading from the recep- 
tion-room into the private office. Then what becomes of this 
alleged key business? Has it not been eliminated from this 
case? Have not both the mountain crowd and the alleged 
key transaction been eliminated? If the testimony can be 
relied upon, is it not true, that no man who came with that 
mountain crowd killed Goebel ; and is it not further true, 
that Youtsey did not get the key either from myself or my 
brother with which to get into my office on the thirtieth of 
January? 

You remember, gentlemen — it is a part of the current his- 
tory of this state — that on both of my former trials in this 
case the prosecution begged the juries to take from me my 
life on the theory that John Powers gave the right key to 
my private office to Henry E. Youtsey, and that John Powers 
did that at my solicitation and at my request. They have 
asked former juries to take my life from me on that proposi- 
tion. They not only deceived the former juries in this case 
and the country at large, but they deceived the Democratic 
minority of the court of appeals of this state, because they 
said in a dissenting opinion that there was no doubt in their 
minds but that Youtsey got the right key from my brother 
and that he had gone into my oMce through the glass door 
that leads into the hallway and killed Mr. Goebel from that 
oMce. They have not only deceived the juries of this county, 
but they have deceived the highest tribunal of this state. 
Now, the prosecution takes a double somersault from their 
former position and says that none of what they have for- 
merly asserted is true ; that the only thing that is true, is that 
I agreed to be away from my office when Senator Goebel 
was killed. 

Youtsey says that the outer door from my private office 
to the hallway was locked and that he had to go through 
the reception-room into the private office to open that door 
on the thirtieth of January. Then, if I am connected with 
Henry E. Youtsey at all, if his own testimony can be relied 
upon, it is the connection of allowing him to go through 
that open door on the thirtieth for the purpose of using that 
office for murder, and not, as the people have been taught to 



OTHER DOOR WAS LOCKED 351 

believe, that he got the key from my brother. Is not that 
true? Have I not stated it fairly? I say if I had any con- 
nection with Henry E. Youtsey, so far as the killing of Mr. 
Goebel is concerned, it must be the connection by leaving 
that door open that leads from the reception-room into my 
private office for the purpose of having murder committed 
from there. The other door was locked. Youtsey, Golden 
and myself all testify to that. Then that door was not left 
open for the purpose of Youtsey's getting in that office to com- 
mit murder. 

Now, let us take up the testimony in this case and see 
whether or not I did leave that other door open for the pur- 
pose of letting Youtsey go in there to kill Senator Goebel. 
What is the testimony? The testimony is, even by Colonel 
Campbell's first love and first star-witness, Wharton Golden 
himself, that he came into my private office the Tuesday on 
which Senator Goebel was killed and said : " Rush up or 
you are going to miss that train," and he says I went to the 
door leading to the reception-room and locked the door and 
bolted it on the inside. That is the testimony of Wharton 
Golden. He testified to that in all these trials, even be- 
fore Youtsey ever became a witness in this case — even before 
Youtsey was arrested. Youtsey says the door was open, but 
Wharton Golden, another star-witness for the prosecution, 
says the door was closed, and that it was locked on the inside 
and bolted. Now, whom are you going to believe, Henry 
E. Youtsey or Wharton Golden? Wharton is swearing to 
prevent himself from getting into the penitentiary and Yout- 
sey is trying to swear himself out of it. You can believe 
whichever one you want to, or you can set them both aside 
and say we can not believe either one of them ; because they 
are both star-witnesses for the prosecution, and they are 
testifying diametrically opposite, each to the other. What 
else do we have in this case upon that proposition? Mr. 
Nickell, who has testified for the prosecution, said that he 
had some business with Governor Taylor on the morning 
of the killing, and while he was sitting in the reception-room, 
waiting to see Governor Taylor, that he saw some man go 
into that private office and come out and go into the private 



352 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

office of the governor. That is the testimony of Mr. Nickell. 
Now, Mr, J. M. Hardgrove, a witness for the defendant, says 
that he was also sitting in that reception-room thirty or forty 
minutes before Mr. Goebel was killed, at the very time Mr. 
Nickell says he was sitting in there, and Mr. Hardgrove 
says that no man went into that office during that interval ; 
that he did see some man, who, he believed, was Grant 
Roberts, go and try to get into that office, and he failed to 
get in there. Mr. Hardgrove is corroborated by Mr. Roberts, 
because he says that he did try to get into my private office 
and failed, because the door was locked, but you can believe 
Mr. Nickell or you can believe Mr. Hardgrove, just as you 
like about it. One or the other of them lied. There is no 
doubt about that. Then, what else do we have? 

Golden stands up against Youtsey. They are both star- 
witnesses, and as far as I am concerned, you can cast their 
testimony to the winds and not believe either. Mr. Hardgrove 
says the man did not go in, and Mr. Nickell says he did. 
So far as I am concerned, you can believe neither. Then 
what do we have? 

In addition to this testimony, R. N. Miller tells you that 
he tried to get into that office between half-past nine and 
eleven o'clock and he found the door locked and he could not 
unlock it. Grant Roberts says that he had some business 
in the private office of the secretary of state, and you noticed 
the manly bearing of that young man, Grant Roberts, upon 
the witness-stand. He tells you he tried to get into that 
office on that morning on some business connected with the 
auditor's office and failed to get in there. Then, if the testi- 
mony in this case can be relied upon, Henry E. Youtsey did 
not go through that door. What else? 

Jim Howard says it is all untrue that Youtsey went 
around through that reception-room and let him into that 
private office. Then what is the testimony in this case? 
Henry E. Youtsey and Mr. Nickell, upon the side of the 
prosecution, say that the door was open, and J. M. Hard- 
grove, Wharton Golden, R. N. Miller, Grant Roberts, Jim 
Howard and Ben Rowe and myself, all on the other side, say 
that the door was locked on that occasion and that they 



BEN ROWE'S TESTIMONY 353 

could not get in there. That is the connection they have 
between me and Henry E. Youtsey, and what are you going 
to do about it? Are you going to say that Youtsey is a gen- 
tleman and a truth-teller and a saint? Youtsey says any- 
body will He when he gets into trouble, no matter how honest 
he may be before that time. That is Youtsey's idea. That 
is what Youtsey said on the witness-stand. Then what are 
you going to do about it? That is the only connection be- 
tween me and Henry E. Youtsey so far as the death of 
Senator Goebel is concerned, if his own words can be relied 
upon. Are you going to say beyond a reasonable doubt that 
Youtsey is a gentleman and a truth-teller? Are you going 
to say that Youtsey is the only man in all this case who is 
entitled to belief? Are you going to say beyond a reasonable 
doubt that R. N. Miller, former county attorney of Breck- 
inridge County, swore to a lie, and that Grant Roberts, the 
brother of the able editor of the Lexington Leader, swore 
to a lie, and that J. M. Hardgrove swore to a lie, and that 
Ben Rowe swore to a lie? Ben Rowe is another man who 
says he tried to get into that office between ten and eleven 
o'clock, and Mr. Franklin called him on the proposition, and 
said : " Ben, didn't you say on the former trial in this case 
that you got back to that office and unlocked it about half- 
past nine when, if Powers can be relied upon, he had locked 
the door and bolted it on the inside and gone to Louisville?" 
and Ben says : " I don't remember about that ; I don't think 
I did." But put it as Mr. Franklin wants it. That door 
was, as a matter of fact, at half-past nine, locked from the 
inside. But let Mr. Franklin take whatever horn of the 
dilemma he likes. That door, on that occasion, was locked 
and bolted, or it was locked and not bolted. Then, if it was 
simply locked, as Mr. Franklin tried to get Ben Rowe to say, 
then what do we have? 

Ben Rowe had a key to the office, W. J. Davidson had a 
key to the office. One was the janitor; the other the assist- 
ant secretary of state ; both had access to, and frequently 
business in, that office. The door might have been left open 
by them. If that door, on that occasion, was simply locked 
and not bolted, there is no telling how Youtsey got in there. 



354 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

He might have gotten in there through one of those people. 
Let Mr. Franklin take whatever horn of the dilemma he likes. 
Then, are you going to say that Miller and Hardgrove and 
Grant Roberts and Wharton Golden and Jim Howard and Ben 
Rowe swore to a lie beyond a reasonable doubt, and that 
Henry Youtsey is a living embodiment of all the manly 
virtues, and that the testimony of this convict and self-con- 
fessed perjurer is entitled to more weight than all these 
other gentlemen, who are not confessed perjurers, and whose 
testimony the law does not challenge, but respects? And 
this connection of this door is the only connection that they 
have 'shown between Henry E. Youtsey and myself in this 
case. What are you going to do about it? 

Now let us take up the other door and discuss that in this 
connection. You will remember that Youtsey said on the 
twenty-ninth of January I agreed to leave the door that 
leads from the private office to the main hallway ajar. I have 
not discussed that door on the morning of the thirtieth, when 
Senator Goebel was killed. Let us see in what condition 
we find that door. 

Golden says that I pulled that door to as I went to Louis- 
ville that morning; that it was a Yale lock, and that it locked 
itself; that I pushed against it and that it was locked. He 
is a witness for the prosecution. I said in my testimony 
that the door was locked, and even Youtsey himself says 
that the door was locked, because he says he took Jim How- 
ard to that door to wait for him while he (Youtsey) went 
around through the reception-room into the private office 
and unlocked the glass door and let Howard in. So, if the 
testimony can be relied upon, that door was also locked. 
Then you say to me : " Mr. Powers, we are of opinion 
that the shot was fired from the office of the secretary of 
state, and you have proven to us here by the testimony in 
this case that both of those doors were locked. If that be 
true, I would like to know how it is that that shot could 
have been fired from the office of the secretary of state ? " 
Why, gentlemen, all we have to do in order to determine 
this matter, is to go to the prosecution for testimony. They 
give us an explanation of it. What does Culton say? Cul- 



POSSIBILITIES IN THE CASE 355 

ton says that Youtsey said to him away back in January 
that he had the shckest scheme yet to kill Senator Goebel ; 
that he had a key to the ofUce of the secretary of state, and 
he could go in there and pull down the blinds and a man 
could shoot Senator Goebel and escape through the base- 
ment. That is what Culton tells you that Youtsey said to 
him away back in January. // Youtsey can be relied upon, 
he did not get that key from either myself or my brother. 
He never did get the right key from either of us to that 
office, and he attempted to get only one key and that 
was on the twenty-ninth of January, the day before Senator 
Goebel was killed. That is what he says about it. Then, 
relying upon the testimony for the prosecution in this case, 
you see how Senator Goebel could have been killed from 
the office of the secretary of state. Youtsey told Culton 
that he had a key to that office or a key that would unlock 
that office, and Youtsey said that he didn't get it from myself 
or my brother ; that he didn't try to get a key from either 
of us until the twenty-ninth of January, 1900. But how else 
could the shot have been fired from that office? Why, it is 
in the testimony in this case that those Yale locks are num- 
bered on the inside and anybody who was in that office could 
have got the number to those Yale locks and got a key 
to fit them. The testimony in this case is that there ought to 
have been three keys to the side door of my private office 
that leads into the main hallway, and the testimony is that I 
never did get more than one key to that office when the office 
was turned over to me. The two keys are unaccounted for, 
and one of those two keys might have been used in getting 
into that office. The prosecution tells you that the windows 
to the private office of the secretary of state were up on the 
thirtieth of January. If they were up, or if they could be 
raised, somebody might have raised those windows from the 
outside and got into that office. Some one could have 
gained access to that office in all these ways. You know 
that burglars roam over the country and can unlock your 
door and get into your house and get into your money- 
drawer. There is a noted burglar in the Georgetown jail 
now. He tells me that he can pass by any door iji thi's town 



356 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

and see the kind of key that unlocks it and go off and in 
a half an hour have a key made and unlock that door. If 
Youtsey is the same expert in getting into offices and making 
keys and things of that character as he is in determining the 
grains of powder in a cartridge ; if he has the same knowledge 
about things of that character as he has about guns, nobody 
would doubt that he could get into that office. But if what 
both he and Culton say about it can be relied upon, he got 
hold of a key away back in January that would unlock 
my private office, and if what Youtsey says can be believed, 
he did jiot get that key, either from my brother or myself. 

Then, if testimony can be believed, I did not leave that 
office open on the day of the tragedy for the purpose of hav- 
ing murder committed from there. Youtsey, Golden and 
myself all say that the door leading from the private office 
into the hallway was locked on that day, and R. N. Miller and 
Grant Roberts, who had business in my office connected with 
the auditor's office, and Ben Rowe, the janitor, and Wharton 
Golden and J. M. Hardgrove and myself all say that the door 
leading from the private office into the reception-room was 
also locked. Jim Howard indirectly says the same thing, 
because he says that Youtsey did not let him into that office, 
as is claimed by Youtsey, and the only two witnesses to the 
effect that the door was open on the thirtieth were Youtsey 
and Nickell. And you know that the door leading from the 
reception-room into my private office was locked and bolted 
from the inside on that day; for when Goebel was shot and 
an angry crowd in the street was threatening to mob the 
occupants of the Executive Building, those in the reception- 
room tried to get into my private office through the reception- 
room door for the purpose of getting the guns in that office 
with which to defend themselves. The proof is overwhelm- 
ing, and not contradicted, that the door was locked and bolted 
on the inside, and Matthews had to climb through the tran- 
som in order to get into that private office. Rowe, Miller, 
Todd, Hardgrove and others testify to that. That fact is 
not disputed. Then we must conclude that the door lead- 
ing from the reception-room into my private office was 
locked on the day of the tragedy, and not left open, as Yout- 



MY TRIP TO LOUISVILLE zi7 

sey claims, for the purpose of giving him access to that 
office in order that murder might be committed from there. 
And I have explained tq you how Youtsey did have access 
to that office on former occasions, and without my knowledge 
or consent, if his own and Culton's testimony can be believed. 
And you remember that thirty-two Yale keys were found in 
a drawer in Youtsey's little office after Goebel had been killed, 
and how nearly one of them came to unlocking the glass door 
to my private office. What was Youtsey doing with all those 
Yale keys ? Answer me that. Now let us take up and discuss 
further the claim on the part of the prosecution that I left 
my office open on the morning of the thirtieth for the purpose 
of letting murder be committed from there. 

Youtsey says that I agreed to be away from my office for 
the purpose of letting murder be committed from there, and 
leaving it accessible for murder to be committed, and the Com- 
monwealth says that Youtsey is corroborated in that proposi- 
tion because, they say, I was away on the thirtieth of January, 
1900. It is true, gentlemen, I was away, and I want to say 
to the Commonwealth right here, that I will risk the fate of 
my case upon why I was away from Frankfort on that day. 
Whatever may be said about me up to that time ; whatever 
rash conduct or incendiary speech may have been attributed 
to me, or has been testified to by anybody who has sworn 
against me ; whatever may have been said upon the side of 
the defense, so far as I am individually concerned, I am 
willing, gentlemen, for you to erase from this case all that 
has been proven in it up to this time and risk my fate in 
your hands upon the purpose of my trip to Louisville that 
day. If my trip to Louisville, as is asserted by the prosecu- 
tion, was in bad faith ; if my trip to Louisville was for 
the purpose, as is said by the prosecution, of per- 
mitting my office to be used for the purpose of letting 
murder be committed from there, and for the purpose of 
being out of the way and trying to take suspicion from 
myself — I say if that claim on the part of the prosecu- 
tion be true, it does not matter what el'se may have been 
proven in this case, in that event, I would be guilty. I say, 
if that be true, it does not matter what else may be proven on 



358 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

the part of the prosecution, — in that event I am guilty ; but I 
say to you, on the other hand, if my trip to Louisville on that 
day was in good faith, for the purpose of getting a crowd 
of people, mostly from Western Kentucky, to come to Frank- 
fort to petition the Legislature, as is claimed by the defense, 
whatever else may have happened up to that time, I am not 
guilty, because I could not be guilty if I were going to 
Louisville for the purpose of getting up a crowd of people 
to come to Frankfort to petition the Legislature ; for if I had 
known Mr. Goebel was going to be killed, such an act as 
that on my part would have been a useless and senseless one, 
and such a mission as that would have been the height of 
nonsense and folly. One of the attorneys on the part of the 
prosecution said yesterday : *' Why didn't you go and get 
your peaceful petitioners from Western Kentucky after hear- 
ing that Senator Goebel was killed? What did the killing of 
Senator Goebel have to do with it? Why did you stop and 
why did you come back to Frankfort?" You know why. 
There is not a man in this case but knows that it would 
have been as useless and as senseless to plead to the Legisla- 
ture after Senator Goebel had been killed and when the 
bosoms of our lawmakers were heaving with rage at the 
dastardly and cowardly crime that had been committed in 
Frankfort — it would have been as useless, I say, to plead 
and petition them when they were drunk with passion and 
filled with hate — as it would be for a man to beg and plead 
to the Niagara Falls not to hurt him after he had thrown 
himself from its precipice and was going down into the depths 
of its awful abyss. So, the mission of my trip to Louisville 
on the thirtieth of January is a most important matter in 
this case. If I were going in good faith, I am not guilty. 
If I were going in bad faith, I am guilty. How arc we to 
determine the purpose of the trip? Let us be fair with each 
other. How can we determine whether my trip to Louisville 
was in good faith or in bad faith? We have to determine 
that from the testimony in this case. Not from what I say 
about it ; not from what the lawyers on the other side of this 
case say about it. That should not weigh as much as a 
straw with you one way or the other, in the rendition of your 



OBJECT OF MY JOURNEY 359 

verdict. You have to determine that matter from the testi- 
mony in the case ; and what is the testimony as to the pur- 
pose of my trip to Louisville on the thirtieth of January, igoo? 
Golden says he did not know why I was going to Louisville 
on that day; that, so far as he was concerned, he had a letter 
from John Henry Wilson to come there, and that that was his 
business to Louisville, but he did not know why I was going 
or why my brother was going. He did not know why Long 
and Day were going. He did not know anything about it. 
So the only man on the side of the prosecution who gives us 
any reason for my being away from my office on that day 
is Henry E. Youtsey, and he says I agreed to be away from 
my office that it might be accessible for murderous purposes. 
What has the defense to refute the testimony of Henry E. 
Youtsey? It has this: R. N. Miller tells you that on the 
night of the twenty-ninth of January he discussed with me 
at my boarding-house, in Frankfort, the plan of bringing a 
crowd of petitioners from Western Kentucky on the following 
day. Walter Day tells you in his deposition in this case that 
on the evening of the twenty-ninth of January, between the 
hours of four and five o'clock, he came into my office and 
said that Governor Taylor wanted him and myself and others 
to bring a crowd of petitioners from Western Kentucky. The 
testimony is that W. J. Davidson was also a member of that 
meeting. I testified that the meeting was held. What has 
the prosecution to rebut that testimony? We say that we 
were discussing the trip to Western Kentucky and we de- 
cided to sleep over the matter that night and meet at my 
office early on Tuesday morning and decide whether we 
would go to Louisville that day. The idea was that the 
contest committee would decide the case in a few days and 
if we were to get anybody from Western Kentucky we had 
to get them at once. These men tell you we did meet 
at my office the next morning. J. Lon Butler, on the 
witness-stand here, tells you that he was called into that 
meeting on Tuesday morning and that we decided to go into 
Western Kentucky to get a crowd of petitioners to petition 
the Legislature. And, as I said to start out with, if we were 
going to get a crowd of petitioners to petition the Legislature, 



36o MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

we could not have known that Senator Goebel was going to 
be killed, because our mission in that event would have been 
a useless and senseless one. A man with a spoonful of brains 
in his cranium would have known that the people would be 
swept off their feet at such a cowardly and atrocious and 
brutal murder as that of Senator Goebel. You know that 
the people at the time were in no state, or frame of mind, to 
be reasoned with. Butler tells you that we were going to 
get a crowd of people to petition the Legislature, Day tells 
you we were going to get a crowd of people to petition the 
Legislature. So does Davidson, and I testify to that myself. 
Whom are you going to believe, Day and Davidson and Butler 
and Miller and myself, or Henry E. Youtsey? You have 
either got to believe Henry E. Youtsey or you have to believe 
these other men. Before you can claim my trip to Louisville 
on January thirtieth was not in good faith, you have to say 
that WaUer Day, W. J. Davidson, J. Lon Butler, R. N. 
Miller and myself all swore to a lie beyond a reasona- 
ble doubt. What are you going to do about it? After that 
meeting is over, Day, Butler, Long, Golden, my brother and 
myself went to the depot, on our way to Louisville. Lon 
Butler says that we discussed the trip to Western Kentucky 
on the train. He said he agreed to get the men on the Illinois 
Central Railroad. He is a traveling man and lived in that 
section of the state and was well acquainted throughout the 
entire Western section of the "state. The testimony is, if 
George W. Long can be believed, that he and I discussed the 
matter of getting petitioners from Western Kentucky on the 
train going to Louisville that day ; and that we made a list of 
the stations from Henderson around by Bowling Green, and 
made an estimate of about the number of men we could get and 
about the cost of transportation. That is the testimony of 
George W. Long. The testimony is that more than an hour, 
or about an hour, before Senator Goebel was killed, George 
W. Long sent two telegrams from Christianburg to Ed 
Mentz, of Glasgow Junction ; to Jim Frank Taylor, of Glas- 
gow, and E. U. Fordyce, of Bowling Green, calling them to 
Louisville. You heard those telegrams read here by two or 
three people. They are here and speak for themselves. 



I DENOUNCE THE CRIME 361 

There is no doubt about that. Here was George W. Long 
sending telegrams to Ed Mentz, E. U. Fordyce, and Jim 
Frank Taylor to meet us at Louisville, Ky. Why was this 
done? Do you pretend to say that George W. Long was in 
the conspiracy and in the plot? Do you mean to say that 
he was in the conspiracy and that he, too, was trying to cover 
up his alleged connection with the crime? Do you mean to 
say that Walter Day was in the conspiracy and that he was 
trying to cover up his alleged connection with the crime? 
Lon Butler said he wrote and Long signed the telegrams. 
Do you mean to say that Lon Butler was in the conspiracy 
and that he was trying to cover up his alleged connection 
with the crime? Do you mean to say, Mr. Franklin — you, 
whose sworn duty it is to prosecute all violators of the law 
in this the Fourteenth Judicial District of the state of Ken- 
tucky — that you believe they were in the conspiracy and 
you are not prosecuting them? If you do, you have been 
false to the people who elected you and untrue to your oath 
of office. If that be true, you are the worst enemy the state 
has within its confines this day, although you say it is filled 
with murderers and assassins. The truth is, Mr. Franklin, 
you don't believe a word of it. The truth is, you know that 
Long and the other men were not in the alleged conspiracy. 
Then, if they were not in the alleged conspiracy, they were 
not sending those telegrams to Jim Frank Taylor, E. U. 
Fordyce and Ed Mentz, in an attempt to cover up their 
alleged connection with the killing of Senator Goebel ; and 
if that is true, why were these telegrams sent? For what 
purpose were they sent? They were sent, if the testimony 
can be relied upon, to get E. U. Fordyce, Jim Frank Taylor 
and Ed Mentz to come to Louisville on the night of the 
thirtieth of January for the purpose of helping get up a crowd 
of petitioners to come to Frankfort from the western end 
of the state. That being true, we did not know that Senator 
Goebel was going to be killed, as heretofore explained. And 
on the way to Louisville, about an hour after the telegrams 
were sent, the news was reported through the train that 
Senator Goebel had been shot from the second or third story 
of the Executive Building — shot down in the State House 



362 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

yard. The testimony is, that I said, as soon as I heard it, 
that it was a shame and an outrage and that it had ruined 
our chances to win in the contests. That is what I said, 
men. But Golden adds that I said it sarcastically. He 
didn't say that the first time he testified in this case. He said 
nothing about my using those word's in a sarcastic man- 
ner, but, when he was told by those who have him in charge : 
" Golden, if you are expecting immunity from the Common- 
wealth, you must testify for the Commonwealth, and it won't 
do to say that Powers said upon hearing that Senator Goebel 
was killed that it was a shame and a.n outrage, and that it 
had ruined our chances to win, because, if Powers uttered 
those words, and said them in earnest, he certainly was not 
in favor of Senator Goebel's being killed ; for he certainly 
knew if Goebel were killed that it would ruin the chances 
of the Republicans to hold their offices." And Golden 
changed his story and now says that I uttered those words 
sarcastically. The prosecution says, when they are confronted 
with overwhelming evidence of my innocence, that I am a 
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde; that I do not mean what I say, 
that I am acting a double part, that there was nobody more 
glad than myself to hear the news that Goebel had been 
shot down. These are the things that these gentlemen 
say; but I want to leave it to you, if I did not speak 
the truth, when I said that it was a shame and an out- 
rage when Senator Goebel was shot. I leave it to your 
honest hearts, to your own sense of right and wrong, if it 
was not an outrage when Senator Goebel was shot down like 
a dog by an assassin's bullet. I leave it to you further, if I 
did not speak the truth, when I said that it had ruined the 
chances of the Republicans to win in the contests. The 
whole world knows that the Republicans lost their offices, 
and didn't I speak the truth when I said it would ruin the 
chances of the Republicans to win in the contests? Any fool 
would have known that. Any fool would have known, if 
Senator Goebel had been shot down from the Executive 
Building, occupied by Republicans, shot down in the State 
House Square, that the Republicans would be charged with 
it; and if they were charged with it, would not anybody 



THE STATE'S OBJECTIONS 363 

know that it would ruin the chances of the Republicans to 
win their offices, when they were being contested before 
Democratic tribunals? Would I not have known, and didn't 
I know, that such a thing, charged to the Republicans, would 
make the board of Democratic election commissioners de- 
cide against me in my case? 

We go to Louisville and what else do we have? Jim Frank 
Taylor was put upon the witness-stand in this case for the 
defense. " Mr. Taylor, did you receive a telegram from 
George W. Long to come to Louisville on the evening train 
of January thirtieth, 1900?" "Yes, sir." "Did you come 
to Louisville in response to that telegram ? " " Yes, sir." 
" Did you know why you were going to Louisville before you 
got there?" "No, sir." "Were you informed of the pur- 
pose after you got to Louisville?" "Yes, sir." "Tell what 
that purpose was." "We object, we object," says Mr. Frank- 
lin. Why object to letting Mr. Taylor tell this jury and tell 
this country that he was called to Louisville to help get up 
a crowd of people to petition the Legislature? You claim to 
have no desire in your heart to prosecute an innocent man. 
You claim that you are acting only in the discharge of your 
official duties; and if that be true, why is it you did not let 
Jim Frank Taylor tell this jury that he was sent for to come 
to Louisville to help get a crowd of petitioners to petition 
the Legislature, from Western Kentucky? Why didn't you 
do it? And when E. U. Fordyce and Ed Mentz were put upon 
the witness-stand, they were asked if they had not received 
telegrams from George W. Long, calling them to Louisville, 
and they said they had, and they read the telegrams here in 
your presence, and when the question was finally put to them, 
"Did George W. Long tell you the object of your being sent 
for to come to Louisville?" they said, "Yes." "What was 
that purpose?" "We object," piped out a chorus of voices 
on the part of the prosecution. Why did they object, if they 
had no desire that an innocent man be punished? Why not 
let the truth in this case come out? Why not let me show 
that I was on a legitimate mission on the thirtieth of January, 
and, therefore, could not have known about any plot to kill 
Senator Goebel? Why don't they deal fairly with me? 



364 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

As I said to start out with, if my trip to Louisville was in 
good faith, I am not guilty. If it was in bad faith, I am 
guilty. Then what are you going to do about it? What is 
the testimony in this case? Henry Youtsey, a convict in the 
walls of the penitentiary, Henry E. Youtsey, who was sworn 
on both sides of this case and both sides of the Howard 
case, Henry E. Youtsey, who first makes an affidavit that he 
did not know anything, and then comes up and swears from 
the witness-stand that he knows almost everything, Henry 
E. Youtsey, who deceived the jury and the country in his own 
trial by having a pretended " conniption " fit in the court-house 
during the progress of his trial, Henry E. Youtsey, who de- 
ceived Arthur Goebel when he told him that he let " Tallow 
Dick " Combs and Berry Howard into the private office of the 
secretary of state, now comes to this witness-stand to de- 
ceive you, in the hope of making life bearable in the peniten- 
tiary of this state, and finally of roaming over the inviting 
fields of freedom in payment for his infamy. Be not deceived 
about it. 

It is the same Henry E, Youtsey, who is the only man 
who tried to give any reason why I went to Louisville on 
the thirtieth of January, and I was surprised, Mr. Hendrick, 
I was sorely disappointed and seriously surprised when you, 
a man who has been a candidate for the highest office within 
the gift of the people of the great state of Kentucky, said 
to this jury yesterday, in substance, that you indorsed 
Youtsey's conduct, when he had a " conniption " fit here in this 
court-house and kept the jury from rendering the verdict 
against him that they otherwise would have rendered. He 
said Youtsey was smarter than I ; that Youtsey had a " con- 
niption " fit and that I did not. No, I did not ; no, I never 
shall. You can turn every stone of this land into a scaffold, 
every tree into a gallows, every home into a grave, and I shall 
yet be found here as long as my frail form stays above the 
green turf, fighting my case and maintaining my innocence ; 
and if there is any blotch brought upon the fair name of the 
state of Kentucky by reason of these trials, that blotch will 
be written upon its pages by the pen of the prosecution. It 
has never been written, it will never be written by a pen of 



UNIMPEACHABLE TESTIMONY 365 

mine or by my submitting and giving up and having " connip- 
tion " fits, when I know and the God above me knows, that I 
had no more to do with the kiUing of Senator Goebel than 
any man on this jury. 

Are you going to beheve Henry E. Youtsey, or are you 
going to believe these other men? Before you bring in a 
verdict of guilty in this case, what have you to do? 

As I said, to start out with, if my trip to Louisville was in 
good faith, I am innocent, and if that trip was in bad faith, 
I am guilty. Then what are you going to do about it? You 
have Youtsey upon the one hand swearing that my trip to 
Louisville was in bad faith, and you have R. N. Miller, say- 
ing nothing of myself, and Walter Day, and W. J. Davidson, 
and Lon Butler, and Jim Frank Taylor, and E. U. Fordyce 
and E. Mentz and George W. Long and the two telegrams, 
testifying that my trip to Louisville was in good faith. 
What are you going to do about it? Are you going to say 
that George W. Long, ex-treasurer of state, swore to a lie 
beyond all reasonable doubt, when he said my trip to Louis- 
ville on the thirtieth of January was in good faith, when his 
testimony is not contradicted by a living witness in this case 
except Henry E. Youtsey, and by him only indirectly? Are 
you going to say that Lon Butler swore to a lie beyond a 
reasonable doubt when he said that my trip to Louisville 
was in good faith? Are you going to say that Walter Day, 
the ex-treasurer of your state under the Taylor administra- 
tion, swore to a lie beyond a reasonable doubt when he said 
my trip to Louisville was in good faith? Are you going to 
do that, when the testimony of Long and the testimony of 
Butler and the testimony of Miller, and Mentz's testimony 
and the testimony of the two telegrams all sustain, uphold 
and corroborate each other? What are you going to do about 
it? Are you going to say that all these men swore to a lie 
beyond a reasonable doubt when their testimony is not con- 
tradicted by a living witness, except Henry Youtsey? Their 
testimony is not impeached, it is unimpeachable. Then what 
are you going to do about it? You have sworn that you 
would try this case according to the law and the testimony, 
and if the testimony has anything to do with it, there is but 



2^6 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

one possible verdict and that is a verdict of not guilty. You 
have either got to say that ex-Treasurer of State George 
W. Long, Treasurer of State Walter R. Day, J. L. Butler, a 
trusted traveling man ; ex-Superintendent of Public Instruc- 
tion W. J. Davidson, ex-County Attorney R. N. Miller, Ed 
Mentz, Jim Frank Taylor and E. U. Fordyce, all worthy 
citizens of this state, and the two telegrams and myself, are 
all perjured scoundrels of the Commonwealth of Kentucky, 
when the testimony of all is unimpeached and is unimpeacha- 
ble, and when they sustain and corroborate each other ; or 
you have got to say that Henry E. Youtsey is a living em- 
bodiment of truth, honor, uprightness and integrity. You 
either have to do that or you are compelled to find a verdict 
of not guilty in this case. There is no escape from that con- 
clusion. 

Then if you try me by the law and the testimony, and you 
have sworn that you will so try me, I shall be given my 
liberty. There can be no escape from it. 

My friend Wilson gave you an able dissertation on the 
testimony of Henry E. Youtsey. I can not spend much more 
time on it; but you take Youtsey's story itself, as to how 
the murder was committed, and on the very face of it, you 
are bound to say it is untrue. You are compelled to discover 
its falsity. 

Colonel Campbell said that it did not matter now whether 
Howard or Youtsey killed Goebel, that I am guilty, if I can 
be criminally connected with either of them ; that we can 
take whichever horn of the dilemma we like. But won't you 
admit. Colonel Campbell, that if Youtsey has lied against 
Howard that he is likely to lie against me? 

Youtsey says that an unknown man came with a letter 
and knocked on his office door a few minutes before Goebel 
was shot and said, " My name is Howard." Youtsey testified 
that he said his name was Youtsey. 

A lovely and attractive young lady, Miss Annie Weist, who 
was in an adjoining room to Youtsey's little office, said that 
none of these things occurred. Howard said that none of 
them occurred. Is Youtsey's word worth more with you 
than the sworn statements of Jim Howard and Miss Weist? 



HOWARD AND YOUTSEY 367 

They had never seen each other before. Howard was a 
stranger in Frankfort. Nobody tells how Howard ever got 
from the Frankfort depot to Youtsey's office. It is a wonder 
that the prosecution didn't have some man like Cecil to say 
that he met Howard down at the depot and took him to 
Youtsey's office; but that is a link in the chain of testimony 
for the prosecution that is missing. Howard is virtually an 
unknown man in Frankfort and he goes to the door of an 
office in the Executive Building and knocks and a man opens 
the door, and he presents that man a letter. What do you 
think of it? They introduce themselves and they talk no fur- 
ther. They go to the glass door to the private office of the 
secretary of state. Youtsey goes around through the recep- 
tion-room and admits Howard to my private office. Up to 
that time nothing is said by Howard about why he is down 
there. No conversation has ever taken place as to what the 
object of his mission is. What do you think of it? Youtsey 
says that he told Howard after he got into the room that 
the plan was to kill Mr. Goebel from the window. 

Is it not a wonder that Howard did not ask him why he 
was placing him under the stairway, and what was the 
necessity for his going under the stairway if he saw any- 
body, and what was the reason for all that 'secrecy? Is it not 
a wonder that Howard did not say to Youtsey, " I've got a 
letter from Taylor saying for me to report to you. What 
does he want ? " Taylor was certainly not fool enough to tell 
Howard in a letter that he wanted him to kill Goebel. Yout- 
sey says that he did not tell Howard anything about what 
was wanted with him until he got him in the room, and then 
he told him that the plan was to kill Mr. Goebel as he came 
up on the sidewalk. What do you think of it? He says that 
Howard picked up the gun, and took his bearing, and every- 
thing was proper and that he was almost ready to pull the 
trigger before the thought struck Howard, "What am I to 
get for this? " What do you think of it? Youtsey said, " You 
can get anything you want." " I want a pardon for blowing 
down old George Baker," says Jim. "That is a mighty small 
thing to ask," says Youtsey. "That is all I want," says Jim. 
Think about it, men! Do you suppose Jim Howard is such 



368 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

a fool as to come down to Frankfort and put himself into 
the office of the secretary of state and " blow down " the Dem- 
ocratic leader of the state for the purpose of getting a pardon 
for the " blowing down " of a man up in Clay County, when 
eleven of the jurymen on his second trial wanted to give him 
his liberty for avenging the assassination of his brother? 
Youtsey says that is all Howard wanted. Nothing is said 
about a pardon from Governor Taylor for the killing of Mr, 
Goebel. Nothing is said about that. And no application has 
ever been made for a pardon, so far as that is concerned, and 
none has been granted, if the testimony of the Commonwealth 
can be relied upon. 

Do you believe Jim Howard would walk into "the most 
dangerous trap " he ever saw and '* blow down " the Demo- 
cratic leader of the state and get himself into a greater trouble 
than that he was already in up in Clay County, and want noth- 
ing for it, except to get out of the trouble in Clay? Do you 
think that reasonable? Howard said to Youtsey, so Youtsey 
says, " If any trouble comes of my killing Goebel we will 
exchange affidavits." Why the necessity of exchanging affi- 
davits? Why didn't Youtsey say to Howard: "Never trouble 
yourself about affidavits. You have no use for an affidavit 
in this case. There is never going to be any trials in this 
matter. Governor Taylor is going to pardon us all." Why 
didn't Youtsey say that to Howard when Howard suggested 
the making of affidavits? My God, men, Howard down there 
in the commission of a crime ten-fold greater than the one 
he was charged with up in Clay County, and all he wanted 
was a pardon for the " blowing down " of George Baker up in 
Clay County ! That is the only way that Youtsey could ex- 
plain why he gave that affidavit that Howard was innocent. 
That is the explanation. Youtsey felt called on to say why 
he has given that affidavit. What else? Youtsey says that 
Howard laid out a number of big horse-pistols on the sill of 
the window and said : " When I shoot Mr. Goebel, I am 
going to fire a dozen shots from all these pistols and am 
going to make them believe there are a dozen men here." 
That is the way the prosecution has of explaining the addi- 
tional shots. What could have been Howard's idea for 



YOUTSEY'S STRANGE CONDUCT 369 

that? What could have been Howard's idea for calling 
attention to the place from which the fatal shot was fired 
by firing from his pistols four or five more shots? 
It is a silly proposition, a nonsensical proposition. Then 
you say, how were the shots fired? I say I don't know 
anything about it; but if the testimony of the prosecution can 
be relied upon, it looks very much as if Youtsey fired those 
pistol shots on the way to the basement of the Executive 
Building, after firing the shot which resulted in the 
death of Senator Goebel. George Barnes tells you that he 
smelled smoke in the hallway of the Executive Building. 
Smoke always goes up, never down. It might have come 
up the steps into the hallway of the Executive Building. The 
truth is that Youtsey did have a pistol in his hand when he 
came around through the basement into the governor's 
office. I say I do not know anything about these things, but 
reason dictates that it must have been that way. 

Then there is another thing about Youtsey's story, that 
brands it as a falsehood. Youtsey says Howard recognized 
Goebel down at the gate and Youtsey says he ran out of the 
room. If Howard recognized Goebel at the gate, Howard 
knew Goebel and it was not necessary for Youtsey to stay 
in the room to point him out. If Youtsey did not fire the 
fatal shot himself, why is it, pray tell me, that he didn't step 
over into the auditor's office or into the reception-room 
and be with a number of individuals who could swear that he 
did not fire the shot that resulted in the death of Senator 
Goebel? Why didn't he do that if he didn't fire the fatal shot 
himself? Why is it that, after the fatal shot was fired, Yout- 
sey says he became panic-stricken and ran down through the 
basement into the barber-shop and into the hands and pres- 
ence of those who opposed him politically? What was the 
necessity for Youtsey to be scared if everybody in the Execu- 
tive Building was implicated in the murder of Senator Goebel? 
Why did he run into the bosom of his foes instead of into 
the bosom of his friends? Why does he run so much from 
those in the Executive Building, if they are his friends, and 
if they indorsed the murder of Senator Goebel ? Think about 
it, gentlemen. 



370 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

What means all this talk about smokeless powder, if Howard 
fired out of the room a number of pistol shots, with ordinary 
black powder, as Youtsey says he did? Why was it necessary 
for Taylor, on the twenty-sixth of January, to dictate a letter 
to Youtsey to be sent to Jim Howard, some two hundred 
miles away, to come to Frankfort for the purpose of killing 
Goebel, when Hockersmith and Johnson and Youtsey were 
daily seeking an opportunity to kill Goebel, if Youtsey can be 
believed? Why the necessity of sending for Jim Howard 
to come and kill Goebel, if the whole State House Square 
was filled with desperate mountain assassins? That is what 
the prosecution claims, and yet out of all the bad mountain 
men in Frankfort, none was bad enough to kill Mr. Goebel, 
and Howard had to be sent for, if the prosecution can be 
relied upon. Why didn't Taylor send a messenger after 
Howard instead of sending a letter? That letter might speak 
in thunder tones against him some time. The reason why 
the letter idea was relied upon by the prosecution in prefer- 
ence to the messenger idea, is that the falsity of the messenger 
idea could be exposed. The messenger would have been com- 
pelled to ride on trains, stop at hotels and come into con- 
tact with people. But no such opportunity was given 
the defense to expose the letter idea. Many thousands of 
letters pass through the hands of the postal authorities daily. 
None of them could testify with any degree of accuracy, 
whether Taylor wrote to Howard on the twenty-sixth of 
January, or Howard wrote Taylor, or neither to the other. 
Youtsey said that he took the letter from Taylor to Howard 
down in short-hand and transcribed it and gave it to Taylor. 
He did not give his short-hand notes to Taylor. Where are 
his short-hand notes containing this letter? Why have they 
never been produced in court? The production of the short- 
hand notes would be evidence that the letter was written. 
Where are they? Echo answers, where? 

Gentlemen of the jury, I would like to call your attention 
to a great many more things concerning Henry E. Youtsey, 
but I shall weary your patience with but a few more of them. 
I want to call yotir attention to this agreement, which was 
made down at Louisville between Henry E. Youtsey and 



QUESTIONS FOR THE STATE 371 

myself, and give you my reasons for doing that, and I ask 
you to put yourselves in my place and see what you would 
have done under like circumstances. Suppose, Mr. Booth, 
that the prosecution in this case had charged you with the 
murder of Mr. Goebel, as they have charged me, and that 
you were exactly in my place. Suppose that it had long 
been the contention of the prosecution that the shot which 
murdered Senator Goebel had been fired from your office, as 
they claim it was fired from mine. Suppose, as a matter of 
fact, that Henry E. Youtsey was seen to run down the stair- 
way and through the basement immediately after the fatal 
shot was fired, and suppose it was the claim of the prosecu- 
tion that you had given Henry E. Youtsey a key to the office 
for the purpose of having the murder committed from there. 
They had convicted you on two former trials on that plea. 
You had not done it, as it turns out now in this case; 
neither myself nor my brother gave Youtsey the key to enter 
that office on the thirtieth of January, if the prosecution can 
be relied upon ; but, suppose they were pretending you had 
done that at the time you got the agreement from Youtsey, 
and had on former occasions asked that you be hanged for 
doing that very thing. Suppose it was a known fact that 
within a few hours after Youtsey had been arrested he had 
made a confession in the case which was false ; that he had 
implicated innocent men ; that he had told Arthur Goebel 
that Berry Howard and "Tallow Dick" Combs were in the 
room, and, relying upon the truth of his statements, Mr. 
Goebel was trying to get at the men who had killed his 
brother (and I don't blame him for that, and neither does any- 
body else) ; but suppose Youtsey had done that, and innocent 
men had been dragged into the matter by reason of Youtsey's 
lies. 

Suppose, when your trial came up in 1900, that there were 
days and days that Youtsey was trying to make a deal with the 
Commonwealth's attorneys and the prosecution for immunity, 
if he would testify. Suppose that deal was almost consum- 
mated at one time. Suppose that, when Youtsey's own trial 
came up, instead of Youtsey testifying in his own behalf, 
he had "conniption" fits, and lay on a cot, apparently 



372 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

unconscious, for days during his trial. Suppose all these 
things, and suppose that after he got down to Louisville he 
gave up his fight and said he was not going to carry his case 
any further. He had contended to you all the way through 
that he was innocent ; that he knew nothing about the murder 
of Mr. Goebel; that he did not know anything about where 
the shot was fired from, or who fired it; that he did 
not know anything about it at all. Suppose he had made 
these statements to you, as he had made them to me, and 
after he got down to Louisville, he said : " I am going to give 
up my fight ; I am going to the penitentiary for life. I am not 
guilty, but I am not going to risk my life any more." Sup- 
pose you knew that he was going down there into that living 
hell, the penitentiary of this state, and suppose you knew that 
the prosecution claimed that Youtsey was the key to the con- 
spiracy and that he could unravel everything. Suppose you 
knew he could easily implicate you by saying he had got 
a key from you to get into your office. He didn't do it, and 
it turns out now that, as against me, he didn't do that. But 
how easily he could have said he did get it, and how dangerous 
to you such a statement would have been. Suppose you sug- 
gested to him : " Youtsey, you are going down to the peni- 
tentiary. In all probability they will make it pretty hard for 
you and I would like you to sign a statement which is 
true that you never had any connection with me so far as the 
killing of Mr. Goebel was concerned." Youtsey says : " All 
right, I will do it; I will sign the affidavit. I signed an affi- 
davit for Jim Howard a few days ago and I am perfectly 
willing to sign yours. Go draw it up." And suppose you 
do go and draw it up and he says : " I don't believe I will sign 
it until I consult my attorneys, and whatever my attorneys say 
about it is all right." Suppose he writes up to L. J. Craw- 
ford, his half-brother, who defended him, and his half-brother 
knew all of his secrets, knew that he knew nothing against 
you, and his half-brother agreed that he could sign and swear 
to the affidavit and his half-brother sent it back to him for him 
to sign and after he got it back he says : " I won't sign that 
paper." Youtsey thinks in his mind : " I have been side- 
tracking the prosecution all the way through. I thought I had 



YOUTSEY'S AFFIDAVIT 373 

them side-tracked before they arrested me, and I have side- 
tracked them into the prosecution of innocent men, Dick 
Combs and Berry Howard. I had a " conniption " fit and side- 
tracked the jury. I am as great an actor as Booth ever was. 
It may be that when I get to the penitentiary I may want to 
get out or get an easy job in there." Suppose he didn't know 
anything against you. You are innocent, but what would you 
do? Would you not try to get an affidavit from Youtsey ex- 
culpating you, even though he did not know anything against 
you, when most of the testimony against you was false 
statements of alleged conspirators, swearing for immunity? 
That is what I did, but he would not sign the affidavit unless 
I would agree that he (Youtsey) would waive the truth or 
falsity of what he was to swear to, and I refused to take it 
under those terms for a few days ; I didn't want it that way ; 
I wanted a clear-cut affidavit without the waiving of anything; 
but I could not get it ; Youtsey would not give it to me, but 
he said, " If you will let me write that agreement here I will 
sign the affidavit," and he writes this agreement: 

" This agreement, made and entered into this twenty-sixth 
day of January, 1901, by and between Caleb Powers, now 
under conviction as a conspirator, and Henry E. Youtsey, 
under conviction as a principal in the murder of Governor 
Goebel. 

" Witnesseth, that for the purpose only of enabling the said 
Powers to clear himself of all connection with said murder, 
the said Youtsey agrees to, and does, sign and swear to the 
following affidavit, waiving its truth or falsity." 

I do not waive anything. I do not agree to waive any- 
thing. Youtsey was the man who was waiving the truth or 
falsity of that affidavit, and not I. I thought it would be 
better for me to get an affidavit from Youtsey of that charac- 
ter than to get none at all. I may have made a mistake about 
it. All people in this world do make mistakes, but this 
was my notion about it: If Youtsey signed this affidavit 
and ever turned up in court to testify against me, as it was 
said by everybody that he would some time become a star- 
witness, I thought it better to have Youtsey swearing on both 
sides of the case. I could show if he ever did swear at any 



374 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

time that I was guilty, that at another time he swore I was 
innocent, and no jury can believe a man who swears on both 
sides of any case. That was my idea and those are the reasons 
why I took the affidavit under those conditions. I may have 
made a mistake. We are all short-sighted, weak, human be- 
ings, and all liable to err and I may have made that mistake, 
but I don't think I did. I did not think I was making a mis- 
take then; I do not think it now. Youtsey is not the only 
man from whom I have got a statement, before he left the 
Georgetown jail for the penitentiary. Jim Jackson, Bob 
Bronhom, Riley, Binkley, Burley and many others have given 
me statements before leaving for the penitentiary, to the effect 
that I had not said anything in their presence while in jail even 
tending to show that I had the remotest knowledge of the 
killing of Goebel. I knew that these men were going to a liv- 
ing tomb and I did not know but what some of them might be 
induced to testify against me in the hope of getting out. I 
thought the same thing about Youtsey, and took his statement. 
I was guarding against possible perjury. 

Now, a few more things in regard to Youtsey. Mr. Hen- 
drick asserted that when Youtsey was at my office window 
with a gun on Saturday, January twenty-seventh, just after 
the Berry- VanMeter contest, I was trying to get Yout- 
sey in a compromising position ; that I was trying to manufac- 
ture evidence for myself; that I was a Dr. Jekyll and Mr. 
Hyde ; that I did not care what testimony they had against 
Youtsey; that I expected to be able to say in the future, if I 
needed to say it, that I advised Youtsey against violence 
and bloodshed and all that kind of business ; and that I went 
and got McKenzie Todd to talk to Youtsey, not for the 
purpose of preventing Youtsey from doing violence, but for 
the purpose of manufacturing testimony for myself. Why, 
if the assertions of these gentlemen can be relied upon, I 
was the last man in all the world to need testimony, because 
it is their contention that the killing of Mr. Goebel was going 
to settle the contests and give the Republicans their offices. 
If that contention upon the part of the prosecution is true, 
I am the last man in all the state of Kentucky to need testi- 
mony. And from another standpoint, do you think I would 



DID NOT ACT DOUBLE PART 375 

go into the thing if I thought I would need testimony or that 
I was ever going to be called up in court about it? If I was 
ever going to be called up in court about it I would lose my 
office, the very thing for which I was contending, and for 
the purpose of holding which, these gentlemen allege, I entered 
into a conspiracy to murder Goebel. They say I was acting 
a double part when I went to my office, where I had a right 
to go, and where duty called me. I happened to find Youtsey 
in there. He was there without my permission or authority, 
if his own testimony can be believed. I said to him : " What 
are you doing at that window with a gun ? " What ought I 
to have said to him? And when he didn't give me the satis- 
faction I demanded, I went to get somebody to talk to him. 
I found Todd. Counsel for the prosecution says I ought to 
have kicked him out of my office. I answer it has never 
been my custom in life to try to control men by brute force, 
and I simply went and got Mack Todd to talk to him and he 
did go in and talk to him. 

Why, if it were a conspiracy for Henry Youtsey to be at 
my window with a gun, was it not another conspiracy 
for him to have been at another office window with a gun? 
If it was a conspiracy on my part to happen to see Henry 
Youtsey at my private office window with a gun, why was 
it not a conspiracy on the part of Mack Todd and George 
Hemphill and these other people who happened to see Youtsey 
at another office window with a gun? Is it more of a crime 
on my part to have seen him at one window with a gun than 
it was for Todd and Day and Stone and Hemphill and others 
to have happened to see him at another window with a 
gun? None of these men ever went and got anybody to 
talk to Youtsey in order that he might be dissuaded from 
his rashne'ss. None of them has ever been charged with the 
murder of Senator Goebel, or with procuring Youtsey to kill 
Senator Goebel. I did get McKenzie Todd to dissuade Yout- 
sey from indiscreet conduct. Colonel Hendrick, in trying 
to convince the jury and the country that I am guilty, said: 
*'If Powers is not guilty, why was he indicted? Nobody has 
heard of Mr. Day, John S. Sweeney, Clifton J. Pratt, John 
Burke and other state officials, who were on the same ticket 



376 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

with Powers, bemg indicted." Yes; that is true, and it is 
further true that Youtsey was the private stenographer of 
John S. Sweeney and got out of the vault of his office 
the rifle with which Goebel is alleged to have been killed. 
It is further true that Youtsey, from a desk in the auditor's 
office, was ordering smokeless powder cartridges and having 
talks with Dr. Johnson and entering into conspiracies with 
the negro, Hockersmith, to kill Goebel, and saying to Day 
that if he had three hundred dollars he could settle the con- 
test. Nobody ever heard of Mr. Sweeney advising with 
Youtsey. Youtsey said to John Ricketts in the office of Lucas 
Moore, commissioner of agriculture, that his job depended 
on Goebel's death. It was there where Youtsey said to Cul- 
ton that he had the slickest scheme yet to kill Goebel. It 
was there where all the guns were stacked. Nobody has 
ever heard of Lucas Moore's being charged with the murder 
of Mr. Goebel. Nobody has ever heard of Sweeney, or Pratt, 
or Burke, or Throckmorton, or Day, or any of the rest of 
the state officials trying to put on foot a plan to ferret out 
the Goebel murder. I did that. Does that make me more 
guilty than they? None of them ever employed J. B. Matthews 
and sent him to see Miss Weist, who was in an adjoining 
room when the murder occurred, to see what she knew 
about his condition. I did that. Does that make me 
more guilty than they? None of them went to John and 
William Sweeney, Jr., and Grant Roberts, who were em- 
ployed in the same office with Youtsey, and who were likely 
to know of his conduct and actions, and say to them : " Yout- 
sey's actions have been suspicious. I think the guilty ones 
connected with the murder of Mr. Goebel should be exposed." 
I did that. Is such conduct as that proof of my guilt, and 
proof of their innocence? None of them ever said to J. B. 
Matthews and McKenzie Todd and others, that he felt that 
a full and complete investigation should be made of Goebel's 
murder. I did that. Does that make me more guilty than 
they? None of them ever called in Detective Griffin, of Som- 
erset, Kentucky, at the instance of J. B. Matthews and George 
Hemphill, and put him to work on the case, under the assur- 
ance that he was an honest detective and would let the facts 



WHAT I DID 377 

remain as he found them. I did that. Is that proof of my 
guilt? None of them tried to get the Louisville defense com- 
mittee, through counsel, to set apart a portion of that money 
to pay detectives to unearth the murderer of Mr. Goebel. 
I did that. Is that a circumstance against me? None of 
them, failing in that, said to Detective T. R. Griffin, to go 
ahead with the work, expose the guilty, if he could, and get 
his pay from the reward commission. I did that. Will you 
find me guilty for doing that? 

None of them ever sent J. B. Matthews to Indianapolis 
to see Charles Finley and ask if he knew anything about the 
two missing keys to the glass door of the private office of 
the secretary of state, that they might know whether or not 
they were used in connection with Goebel's murder. I did 
that. None of them ever went to Governor W. O. Bradley 
and Judge Yost and said to them, " We have been investigat- 
ing the Goebel murder," and that they believed they would 
go and lay before Mr. Franklin, the Commonwealth's at- 
torney, all the facts in their possession, to the end that the 
guilty might be exposed and apprehended. I did that. And 
yet Colonel Hendrick asked: "Why did they charge me 
with the Goebel murder and did not charge the other state offi- 
cials?" I am sure that none of the state officials he named 
had the remotest connection with Goebel's murder, but none 
of them is more innocent than I. So far as the testimony 
appears, McKenzie Todd and myself are the only ones who 
tried to dissuade Youtsey from his rashness before Goebel 
was killed, and Todd did that on two occasions at my instance, 
once on the Saturday before Goebel was killed, when Youtsey 
was in my private office with a gun, and once on the Monday 
morning before the killing, in the hallway of the Executive 
Building. Both McKenzie Todd and myself testified to these 
things. No Republican official at Frankfort, as far as the 
testimony appears, spent his means in trying to expose Goe- 
bel's murderers. I did that, and yet they say I am guilty. 
If every man should be indicted before whom Youtsey did an 
indiscreet act, why don't you indict Walter Day, McKenzie 
Todd, George Hemphill, S. B. Stone, R. N. Miller, John 
Ricketts, Grant Roberts, Frank Johnson and many others? 



378 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

Whatever I do, and wherever I go, and whatever I say, 
these men construe the act against me. If I go up the road, 
they say I ought to have gone down. If I say one thing, they 
say I ought to have said another. If I do one thing, they say 
I ought to have done another. They say when Burton was 
in my office at that meeting, making an incendiary speech, 
that I called him down and said if violence is to be contem- 
plated, and if this meeting has for its object the murder of 
anybody, I propose to withdraw from this meeting and have 
nothing further to do with it. Colonel Hendrick, in his argu- 
ment for the prosecution, says : " The idea of Powers' say- 
ing that he would withdraw and have nothing further to 
do with the meeting! The idea of Powers' resigning his 
office ! The idea of Powers' going home ! " He says it 
is a ridiculous proposition. What if I had* done anything 
else on that occasion than what I did? What if I had come 
to the conclusion that the meeting was being held in my office 
and that the people who were assembled in that office occu- 
pied the relations of one's guests and that I, therefore, should 
say nothing, even if they were indiscreet, what would the 
prosecution have said in that instance? They would have said 
that I indorsed Burton's conduct by not getting up and say- 
ing that I would not stand for anything of that kind. What 
if I had sat quietly by and said nothing? They would have 
said that I indorsed every word that Burton said, and rejoiced 
at it in my heart. When I did call him down; when I did 
tell him that I did not propose to be a party to such a thing 
as that, these men say that I was acting a double part and 
that I didn't mean it. It is be damned if you do, and be 
damned if you don't. Whatever road I take, wherever I go, 
these men say I am acting a double part. Mr. Hendrick 
said that because I testified on the witness-stand with calm- 
ness and deliberation I was swearing to lies. What if I 
had testified in any other way? What if I had been darting 
and scouring over that platform and jumping at every propo- 
sition? They would have said: "Of course he is guilty." 
Whatever I do, they ask you to find me guilty for it. Down 
in Louisville, when I am alleged to have said to Golden: 
" I have made a mistake in coming down here ; let us go back 



SUSPICIOUS OBJECTIONS 379 

to Frankfort on the first train — that was the thirtieth of 
January — they say I said that because I had made 
a mistake in leaving Frankfort the day that Senator Goebel 
w.as killed, and that the thing to do was to return to Frank- 
fort on the first train. What if I had remained in Louisville, 
what would they have said? They would have said: "He 
was afraid to go back where the bloodshed, assassination and 
murder had been done in his absence." They say I am guilty 
because I left my office on the morning before Senator Goebel 
was killed and doubly guilty because I returned to it after 
he was killed. So, whatever I do, they ask you to convict 
me for it. After the shooting was over I began to make in- 
vestigations as to who fired the shot that resulted in the 
death of Senator Goebel, but I believe I am not permitted 
to speak as to that, because the prosecution objected to that 
evidence and it was sustained. 

When Grant Roberts was put on the witness-stand and 
the question was put to Roberts : " Is it not true that you had 
a talk with Caleb Powers in his office after Senator Goebel 
was killed, and is it not true that he said to you on that occa- 
sion : ' They are claiming this shot came from my office ; I am 
satisfied it did not, but I want you to make all the investiga- 
tion in your power to unearth the guilty and to uncover the 
truth'?" and there came from the side of the prosecution a 
chorus of objections to Grant Roberts' answering that ques- 
tion. Why did they object to my showing I did what I could, 
lent all the assistance I could, to unearth Goebel's murderer? 
Mr. Hendrick said yesterday that I had talked with Gov- 
ernor Bradley and Judge Yost about it. I did have a talk with 
Governor Bradley and Judge Yost about going to Mr. Frank- 
lin and laying before him all the facts I had found out with 
reference to the killing of Mr. Goebel. They say I was act- 
ing a double part; that I was trying to take suspicion from 
myself, and when Mack Todd was put upon the witness-stand 
and asked this question : " Todd, did you have any conversa- 
tion with this defendant, after Mr. Goebel had been killed, 
in the hallway of the Executive Building, and did he say to 
you upon that occasion that they were claiming the shot came 
from his office, and that he wanted you to do all in your 



38o MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

power to ascertain the truth of it; that so far as he was con- 
cerned, he had nothing to fear, and that he wanted a 
full investigation of the afifair?" There came a chorus of 
objections from the side of the prosecution. Why object? 
why do they keep it from you, that I did whatever I could 
to unearth the murderer of Senator Goebel, and that I em- 
ployed Matthews to help run the murderer down? Why ob- 
ject to my exposing the guilty? If I had been implicated 
with Youtsey, I certainly would not have been trying to ex- 
pose his guilt, because, in that event, I would be exposing 
my own guilt. Cecil said that on Monday night, before Goe- 
bel was killed, I said that there was a fellow across the 
hall (meaning Youtsey) who wanted to kill Goebel the other 
day, and that I would not let him do it, because I was afraid 
to trust him. Youtsey said that I was telling him on the 
morning of the same day that I was not afraid to trust him, 
and was planning with him to have the shot fired from that 
office. Cecil testified that I was alone when I said that to 
him. Youtsey testified that I was alone when I said that 
to him. The testimony of the one contradicts the other. 

Cecil is under indictment, and is swearing for immunity. 
Youtsey is in the penitentiary of this state, and is trying to 
swear his way to liberty. The law challenges the testimony 
of them both, and says that it can not be believed unless it 
is corroborated. They contradict each other. McKenzie 
Todd, who was formerly a witness for the prosecution, told 
you that both he and I were trying to prevent Youtsey from 
doing acts of violence the Saturday before Goebel was killed, 
and that on the same Monday morning, when Youtsey says 
I was indorsing murder, when I was alone with him, 
Todd tells you that both he and I were advising Youtsey 
against rashness, and that he did it at my instance. The testi- 
mony is that I happened to meet Youtsey in the hallway that 
morning, and that he wanted to enter my office, and remember- 
irig what his conduct had been on the Saturday before, I went 
and got Todd to talk to him again. Todd knew him well. 
These were the only occasions I ever came in contact with 
Youtsey, except when I took the oath of office on the first 
of January, 1900. I scarcely knew Youtsey. If Youtsey can 



YOUTSEY ARRAIGNED 381 

be believed, he is the man who was seeking Goebel's death, 
not I. It was Youtsey, with Dr. Johnson, who first talked 
of the murder of Mr. Goebel. It was Youtsey who said that 
Johnson wanted to kill him from the very start, and that the 
start was when Johnson came before Youtsey to be sworn 
to an affidavit. It was Youtsey, with Johnson, who searched 
through a vacant room on the second floor of the Executive 
Building, hunting a place from which to kill Goebel. It was 
Youtsey, with Dr. Johnson, who examined the hallway win- 
dows and doors of the Executive Building in search of a suita- 
ble place from which to fire the shot. It was Youtsey, 
with Johnson, who examined the private office of the secre- 
tary of state, when I was in the mountains of Kentucky, 
with the view of firing the shot from there. It was 
Youtsey, with Johnson, who decided that that office was the 
place from which to fire the shot. It was Youtsey who 
ordered smokeless powder cartridges from Cincinnati, with 
which to kill Goebel, on the twenty-second of January, when 
I was in the mountains of Kentucky. It was Youtsey who 
told Johnson that the cartridges go with the gun, after he 
had received them from Powell, Clements and Company, of 
Cincinnati. It was Youtsey who stole a Marlin gun belong- 
ing to Grant Roberts from the vault in the auditor's office, 
and carried it into his own little office, preparatory to killing 
Mr. Goebel. It was Youtsey who carried that gun into my 
private office, when I was in the mountains of Kentucky, 
trying to get men to come to Frankfort as witnesses before 
the contest boards. It was Youtsey who placed Johnson in 
that office in my absence, and tried to kill Senator Goebel. 
It was Youtsey, with Johnson, who mapped out how the 
assassin should escape from that office after the shot 
was fired. It was Youtsey, with Johnson, who planned that 
he should run down the stairs and through the basement 
and around and back into the hallway of the Executive Build- 
ing. It was Youtsey who ran that route, following the firing 
of the fatal shot. It was Youtsey, with Johnson, who told 
Culton that he had the slickest scheme . yet by which he 
could kill Senator Goebel; that he could kill him from the 
office of the secretary of state and escape through the base- 



382 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

ment. It was Youtsey, with Johnson, who discussed a plan 
to kill Senator Goebel in his room at the Capital Hotel with 
nitroglycerin. It was Youtsey who would have favored that 
but for the fact that his wife had some relatives boarding at 
the hotel. It was Youtsey who sought the negro Hocker- 
smith to kill Goebel, after his and Johnson's plans had failed. 
It was Youtsey who took Hockersmith into his private office 
and sought his services to kill Senator Goebel. It was Yout- 
sey who took Hockersmith into the private office of the sec- 
retary of state with a view to having Goebel killed from 
there, and in my absence. It was Youtsey who showed 
Hockersmith the gun and cartridges he had prepared with 
which to kill Goebel. It was Youtsey who was disappointed 
when Hockersmith failed to kill him. It was Youtsey who 
then set about trying to get some one else to do it. It was 
Youtsey who told John Ricketts that his job depended on 
Goebel's being killed and Taylor's holding his seat. It was 
Youtsey who said that he had one hundred dollars to put up 
to that end. It was Youtsey who told Walter Day that if 
he had three hundred dollars he could settle the contest. It 
was Youtsey who made the proposition to some of the moun- 
tain men at Frankfort to kill Goebel. It was Youtsey who 
dreamed that he saw some of the mountain men kill Goebel. 
It was Youtsey who had the killing of Goebel so much on 
his mind that he even dreamed about it at night. It was 
Youtsey who said that Howard knocked on Youtsey's private 
office door on the morning of the thirtieth, but Miss Weist, 
a beautiful and attractive young woman who occupied an ad- 
joining room to Youtsey's, said that did not occur; that the 
door between her office and Youtsey's was open on that 
morning and that Youtsey was not in that office at all that 
morning, and that no one knocked on his office door. It was 
Youtsey who had advised the young lady to leave her office 
a few days before, because he said that trouble was going 
to come up. It was Youtsey who had his gun with him on 
that occasion. It was Youtsey who was sitting both at the 
reception-room window and at the window in the private 
office of the secretary of state with the window hoisted, the 
blinds pulled down and a Marlin gun across his lap. It was 



YOUTSEY ARRAIGNED 383 

Youtsey who said to Culton about the middle of January 
that he had a slick scheme to kill Goebel from the private 
office of the secretary of state; that he had a key that would 
unlock the door of that office and that he could get in there 
any time he wanted to, by means of that key. It was Yout- 
sey zvho said that he did not get that key from either myself 
or my brother. It was Youtsey who said that he never did 
get any key from me, and that he never tried to get any key 
from my brother until the twenty-ninth day of January, the 
day before Goebel was killed. It is Youtsey who says that 
he never did get the right key from my brother; that the 
one he got on the twenty-ninth of January failed to unlock 
the door. 

It was Youtsey who ran, panic-stricken, down the stairway 
and through the basement after Goebel was killed. It was 
Youtsey who said to S. S. Shepherd that if he had his way 
the contest would soon be settled. It was Youtsey who 
said that everybody was kicking on his killing Goebel, and 
that he would have to drop it. It was Youtsey who wanted 
an alibi after Goebel was killed. It was Youtsey who asked 
Culton if he could not place him up in the lobby of the Legis- 
lature with Culton and swear that he was up there when 
Goebel was shot. It was Youtsey who refused to tell Frank 
Johnson where he was when Goebel was shot. It was Yout- 
sey who wanted to send Grant Roberts twenty dollars for 
his gun after Goebel was killed. It was Youtsey who tried 
to buy John Mastin's gun before Goebel was killed, and in- 
tending to use it for the purpose of killing Goebel. 

It was Youtsey who began making confessions six hours 
after he was arrested. It was Youtsey who told Arthur Goe- 
bel that he had let Dick Combs and Berry Howard into the 
private office of the secretary of state just before Goebel was 
shot. It was Youtsey who says he lied when he did this, 
but that he did it in order not to harass Mr. Arthur Goebel's 
mind. It was Youtsey who, by lying to Arthur Goebel, had 
Berry Howard and Dick Combs arrested and indicted on 
the charge of killing Senator Goebel. It was Youtsey who 
permitted Dick Combs to be dragged from jail to jail and to 
lie behind prison bars for many months. It was Youtsey 



384 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

who let Berry Howard be put upon trial for his life, and 
never breathed a word to the prosecution that Berry Howard 
was an innocent man and that he had lied when he told 
Arthur Goebel that Berry Howard was in the private office 
just before the shooting. 

It was Youtsey who had '' conniption " fits when put upon 
trial for his life. It was Youtsey who said that he did that for 
the purpose of deceiving the court, the jury and the country. 
It was Youtsey who said that, as a matter of fact, he 
had no fit, but thought it was the best thing to do under the 
circumstances. It was Youtsey who lay upon a cot during 
the most of his own trial, apparently unconscious of what 
was going on about him. It was Youtsey who always main- 
tained to his own dear wife that he was innocent of the crime 
charged against him. It was Youtsey who refused to appeal 
his case, and went to the penitentiary for life. It was Yout- 
sey who made an affidavit before he went to the penitentiary 
that he did not know and had not seen Jim Howard until 
long after Goebel had been killed, and now swears he swore 
a lie upon that occasion. It was Youtsey who made an 
affidavit before he went to the penitentiary to the effect that 
he knew no circumstance, even remotely, to connect me with 
the killing of Senator Goebel. It is Youtsey who says that 
when he swore to that he swore to a lie. It was Youtsey 
who said that anybody would swear to a lie when he got into 
trouble and was trying to get out. It was Youtsey who was 
kept on bread and water for eight consecutive Sundays in 
the penitentiary of this state before he became a witness in 
these cases. It was Youtsey who was put to firing a furnace 
in the hot days of July and August before he ever testified 
for the Commonwealth. It was Youtsey who testified that 
the warden of the penitentiary and others advised him to tell 
what he knew. It was Youtsey who wrote out a statement 
of what he said he knew and sent it to Judge Cantrill. It 
was Youtsey who burned that statement, together with his 
short-hand notes of it, when it was returned to him, because 
it was not satisfactory. 

It was, in all probability, Youtsey who failed to implicate 
me in that statement. It was Youtsey who told Colonel 



YOUTSEY ARRAIGNED 385 

Campbell in a statement a few hours after he was arrested 
that he never discussed with me the killing of Goebel from 
my office. It is Youtsey who now says he lied about that. 
It is Youtsey who says that I agreed to leave my office door 
open for the purpose of letting murder be committed from 
there. It is Youtsey who says that the door leading from 
the reception-room into my office was open on the morning 
of the thirtieth of January, before Goebel was killed. It is 
Youtsey who is contradicted in that by Ben Rowe, the jani- 
tor ; R. N. Miller, a clerk in the reception-room ; Grant Rob- 
erts, the brother of an able newspaper editor of this state; 
J. M. Hardgrove, who was in tlie reception-room and saw 
some one try to enter my private office thirty or forty minutes 
before Goebel was shot, but failed. It is Youtsey who con- 
tradicts Golden, who says he saw me lock that door from 
the inside and bolt it before leaving for Louisville on the 
morning of the thirtieth. It is Youtsey who is contradicted 
by Jim Howard, who says Youtsey did not let him into the 
private office on that day, and lastly, Youtsey is contradicted 
by my own testimony. 

It is Youtsey who is the alleged key to the alleged con- 
spiracy. It is Youtsey who failed to tell us when and where 
the conspiracy was entered into to kill Goebel and who were 
present. It is Youtsey who connects nobody with the alleged 
conspiracy, except as he talked with them alone. It is Youtsey 
who had an alleged private talk with my brother, and a man 
unknown to Youtsey, about the alleged wrong key to my 
office. It is Youtsey who had an alleged private talk with Jim 
Howard, a man unknown to Youtsey, about killing Senator* 
Goebel. It is Youtsey who had an alleged private talk with 
W. J. Davidson about getting into my office. It is Youtsey 
who meets this one here and that one there and has a private 
talk with them and connects them with the murder of Mr. 
Goebel. It is Youtsey who said he knew nothing incriminat- 
ing against Charles Finley, although Finley has loudly and 
long been denounced as a conspirator. It is Youtsey who 
had but one talk with me about the murder of Mr. Goe- 
bel, and that was the day before Goebel was killed, if 
Youtsey's own testimony can be believed. It is Youtsey 



386 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

who says he had that talk with me when I was alone, 
and in that talk with him when I was alone I agreed 
to be away from my office. It is Youtsey who says that I 
left my office on the morning of the thirtieth of January for 
the purpose of permitting murder to be committed from there. 
It is Youtsey who is contradicted in this by R. N. Miller, 
George W. Long, ex-state treasurer; Walter Day, another 
ex-state treasurer; J. Lon Butler, a trusted traveling sales- 
man for a large wholesale house in Baltimore; E. U. For- 
dyce, Jim Frank Taylor and Ed Mentz, all reputable men, 
and also myself. It is Youtsey who said that I was away 
from my office for a sinister purpose, while all these other 
men say that my trip to Louisville on that day was for the 
purpose of getting up another crowd of petitioners to come, 
mostly from Western Kentucky, to petition the Legislature. 

Is there a man on this jury who believes that I had the 
remotest connection with Henry E. Youtsey in so far as the 
killing of Senator Goebel was concerned? If there be one, 
let me bring this matter home to you by an illustration. Sup- 
pose, Mr. Layson, when you were coming down the streets of 
Georgetown — coming here to serve on this jury — that you 
saw a young man sitting in front of one of these saloons here, 
and he a'sked you to get him a drink. You knew nothing of 
the young man ; you had seen him around town here once 
or twice in your life. 

You did not know where his parents lived ; you knew noth- 
ing of him or about him ; he stopped you on the street and 
said to you : " Mr. Layson, I want a drink of whisky. I 
want you to go in and buy it for me, or loan me the money 
with which I can buy it. I am dying of thirst; I have got 
no money and no friends here ; but for the sake of my burn- 
ing appetite and for me, I want you to loan me just one 
dime to get a drink ; " and you say to him : " Young man, 
I can not do it. To begin with, it is a violation of the law 
for me to loan you any money for such a purpose. And if 
I could loan it to you, without any infraction of the law of 
this town, I would not do it. You are a young man; upon 
the young men of this state and this union depend its per- 
petuity and its progress. I never started any boy on the road 



AN ILLUSTRATION 387 

to ruin; I can not start you. Young man, listen to the advice 
of an older head. Liquor contaminates everything that it 
touches. It unfits you for business ; it degrades your man- 
hood, undermines your vigor and lays waste your energies ; 
it saps your vitality and loses for you the respect and con- 
fidence of your neighbors and friends ; it breaks your mother's 
heart and blots out your attachment for home ; it ruins your 
hopes and prospects for a bright and happy life ; it hastens 
your father to a sad and immature grave ; it brings tears 
down the cheeks of mothers and floods their hearts with 
misery and woe. Young man, you should not ask me to 
aid such an infamous cause ; I can not do it. I have some 
respect for my country's honor. Dearth and desolation are 
found in the wake of whisky's course. It covers the land 
with misery and crime. It will curse your existence here 
on earth and finally land you in hell. Young man, I can not 
do it." 

And, Mr. Booth here, who was with you coming down the 
streets, has stopped to wait for you. You go on to him 
thinking about the request of the young man. It strikes you 
that it would be a good idea for him to go back and talk to 
that fellow. He is about to do that which will take him on 
the road to ruin and make him a curse to the country that 
he calls his home and a disgrace and a dishonor to the state 
we all love. You wish that he would go and talk to him. Mr. 
Booth goes. He is actuated by the same feelings that actuated 
you. He enters into conversation with the boy. He says 
that it will never do to drink ; that it has slain too many 
reputations ; that it has brought shame and despair and mis- 
ery and want to too many homes ; that it has been the father 
of too many crimes ; that it does not stop at the havoc and 
ruin of the poor, but, like a vile and slimy serpent, it crawls 
across the threshold of our fairest homes and leaves its 
desolation and ruin there. It creeps into our courts and 
defiles the streams of justice; it invites famine and courts 
disaster. It won't do to drink, young man. And about that 
time, Mr. Layson, you have gone back to where your neigh- 
bor has been talking to the young man. You hear him say 
that it will never do to drink, and emphasize what you 



388 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

have said before you again repeat, " That is right, young man, 
it will never do to drink." Time passes on ; you are detained 
here in court. You have been chosen to serve on this jury; 
you are here performing the obligations of citizenship. And 
after this trial is over ; after these long days of waiting and 
suspense are at an end, with a consciousness of duty well 
performed ; with the thought in your mind that this day's 
work, whatever your neighbors may temporarily think about 
it, will stand the test of time and vindicate your actions, and 
with the thought in your breast that if you have erred at all, 
it has been on the side of mercy and humanity, you go forth 
from this jury-box and again be given your liberty and have 
the privilege to mix and mingle with your fellow men with- 
out restraint and take your place again in the active battles 
of life, assuming its cares and sharing its burdens. 

Suppose, as you are leaving this town, you come across 
this young man on the street and he again asks you for more 
whisky or the money with which to purchase it. You are 
wanting to get to your home. You do not tarry long with 
him ; you have given him advice before, but you feel as if 
you owe it to your country to advise him again. You again 
ask Mr. Booth to advise with him, as he is better acquainted 
with him than you. And you say to Mr. Booth : " I wish 
you would go and talk to that young man again ; he is yet 
wanting whisky." And you go and talk to him, Mr. Booth, 
and the young man says that is all right. " Then I will not 
drink if it is going to ruin me ; I will let it alone." You 
gentlemen pass on to your homes. You think no more about 
the young man. Your mind and time are occupied with 
other matters. Weeks pass, and suddenly, Mr. Layson, the 
sheriff of your county comes with a warrant for your arrest. 
Maybe you say you will give yourself up as did Jim Howard. 
Maybe you say that the courts and politics and money and 
prejudice and everything else is against you, and that you 
will stand no show to get a fair trial, and that you decide 
not to go. The sheriff arrests you on a warrant charging 
you with furnishing money to the young man, and lodges 
you in jail. You are carried before the courts for trial. You 
find the sentiment of the people is greatly aroused 



AN ILLUSTRATION 389 

because of your alleged offense. They hate liquor in all its 
forms, and try to prevent it from contaminating the lives of 
the youths of the country. It is a fact that the young man 
got drunk soon after you came in contact with him. They 
charge you with furnishing him the money to get drunk. 
You were seen talking with him a while before he did get 
drunk. 

The country says that any man who will strike a fatal 
blow at the very foundation of society and our homes by 
giving our youths whisky shall be severely dealt with. The 
newspapers of the state jump on you as soon as you are 
arrested. The politicians of the country, seeing an oppor- 
tunity to ride into office on the indignation of the people by 
denouncing you, have been proclaiming your infamy from 
every cross-roads in the land. Your case is called for trial. 
You are a liquor man. You find that you are to be tried 
exclusively by Prohibitionists. The judge is a strong Pro- 
hibitionist. The prosecuting attorney and officers of the 
court are opposed to your liquor views, and the whole country 
has been taught to hate you, not because of what you have 
com.mitted, but because of what you are alleged to have com- 
mitted. Your trial begins. The prosecution puts the young 
man on the witness-stand. He testifies that you had a private 
talk with him as you came here to Georgetown, and that 
while you did not exactly loan him the money with which to 
get the whisky, you left the saloon door open and told 
him to help himself, and that he did enter the saloon, at your 
instance, and got drunk. This closes the case against you. 
It is your time now to be heard. You put Mr. Booth on the 
stand and he testifies that as you and he came to town to 
serve as jurors in this case you did have a talk with this 
young man on the streets of Georgetown, and that after you 
had a talk with him you did come to him and ask him 
to also have a talk with the young man. 

Mr. Booth testifies that he did go, in pursuance to your 
advice, and have a talk with the young man, and that he 
advised him not to drink v/hisky. He testified further that 
while he was talking with him you, Mr. Layson, did 
come up and enter into conversation between the young 



390 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

man and him, and that you did say to the young man 
it will never do to drink. This is the testimony of Mr. 
Booth. He testified further that after your services as jurors 
were over, in this case, both of you started to your homes and 
you both again came in contact with this same young man. 
Mr. Booth testified that you came to him again and asked him 
to go and talk to this young man and advise him not to drink, 
and he testifies further that the young man promised him 
he would not drink. 

You go on the stand, Mr. Layson, in your own behalf, and 
you testify substantially to what Mr. Booth testified to; 
you say that the young man did want to borrow from you 
some money to buy whisky and that you did not loan 
it to him, nor did you tell him to go into the saloon and get 
it. You tell the jury, under your oath, that you did call Mr. 
Booth to come and talk to the young man and advise him 
not to drink. You say to this jury that you felt that you 
were doing your Christian duty and your duty as a citizen. 
You tell the jury that you both passed on and left the young 
man, and came on to this court and were detained here as a 
juror to try this case, and that when the trial was over and 
you were discharged from jury service you again ad- 
vised him not to drink. You testify further that you again 
called on Mr. Booth to talk to this young man and advise 
him to abstain from the use of all intoxicants. You say 
further that it is true you are a farmer and raise corn 
and rye to sell, and you testify that it is further true the 
more whisky there is consumed the higher will be the price 
of your corn and rye, but that you were advising the young 
man in good faith not to drink. You testify further that 
you are a citizen of this county, and that you wanted it 
to be pure in morals, true in religion, lofty in its ideals of 
right and wrong. You testified that you would not, under 
any state of case, attempt to undermine the foundation stones 
of society and of your country for the paltry sum of a few 
dollars and cents, and you would not, Mr. Layson. This 
closes the case for the defense. 

The attorneys for the prosecution address the jury against 
you. They allege that if you did advise the young man not 



AN ILLUSTRATION 391 

to drink or go into saloons you did not mean it; that 
you had corn and rye ; that the more whisky there is consumed, 
the greater will be the price of your corn and rye, and that 
is the thing in which you are interested. The testimony of 
the attorneys, Mr. Layson, is the only thing against you, and 
when the speeches are all over the jury retires to the jury- 
room here. They are not in there long enough to read the 
indictment until a tap is heard on the door. They enter and 
a verdict conies: "We, the jury, find the defendant guilty 
and fix his punishment at hard labor for the period of his 
natural life in the penitentiary of this state." 

My God, Mr. Layson ! What emotions would fill your 
breast when you heard the verdict read, — read by your fel- 
low men; read by twelve citizens of your own state, and 
that, too, Mr. Layson, when you know you were inno- 
cent of the charge; when you know you did all that was 
required of you as a citizen to your country, and gave 
the young man the very best advice known to your head or 
heart. You did more ; you called your neighbor and had him 
advise him. You not only did what the morals of your 
country require, but you went further ; you did more than 
that. You fulfilled the biblical injunction, that if your 
brother errs, or is about to err, to put him in the right; and 
for that fatherly and country-saving advice you have been 
branded as an enemy to your country and as a foe to man- 
kind ; as a dangerous element to our citizenship. What 
would you think of a state that would so mistreat you ? When 
perils come to our country, when our flag is endangered, the 
country calls upon you to defend it ; neither your property 
nor your life is spared in its defense, and when peril comes 
to you, Mr. Layson, as in this case I have supposed, instead 
of the state and country using its strong arm to defend you, 
it uses all its resources to oppress you. What would you 
think of it, Mr. Layson? The country that will not defend 
its defenders is a disgrace to the world, and its flag a filthy 
rag that befouls the air through which it waves. 

I ask you, Mr. Layson, how does your conduct differ in the 
case I have supposed from mine in dealing with Henry 
Youtisey? I saw the young man in my office. I do not know 



392 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

how he came there. He was in the reception-room without 
authority or permission from any one, as far as I know, and 
as far as has been proven in this case. If he would go to 
one place without permission, he would go to another without 
permission. He did get there without permission. That tes- 
timony is not contradicted by any testimony on the part of 
the prosecution. I saw him in the office with a gun. I went 
into my office; I had a right to go; I went where my duty 
called me. I found him there. He had a gun. I asked him 
what he was doing with it. What should I have asked him? 
And when he did not give me the satisfaction I demanded, 
I went to get some one to talk to him who was better ac- 
quainted with him than I was. I advised him for the best, 
as you did the young man, Mr. Layson, who wanted the 
money to buy whisky. I gave him the best advice I had. 
So did you in the case I have supposed. I could have 
talked to him myself and have let him go his way. So 
could you with the young man who wanted the whisky. 
You thought it best to have some one else to talk to him, 
and you did have it done. H you had advised the young 
man to get drunk and had loaned him the money for that 
purpose, the prosecuting officer would have said : " Of 
course he is guilty. He says he loaned him the money for 
that purpose." And when you show that you not only did 
not loan him the money, but advised him not to drink, and 
prove it by Mr. Booth, then they say you are playing a double 
part; that you did not mean it. It is be damned if you do 
and be damned if you don't. And with me it is be damned 
if you do and be damned if you don't. 

Gentlemen, I am a citizen of this state, and I should be 
treated as such, whether I am a Republican or a Democrat. 
Whether I was born in the hills or in the plains, I am enti- 
tled to justice at the hands of my fellow citizens. I am a 
citizen of this country, and citizenship means that a man 
should be obedient to the law and have due regard 
for the rights of others, promote the welfare and well-being 
of our neighbors and in times of peril give our property 
and our lives for our country. Citizenship means more than 
that, gentlemen; it means that this country shall protect us 



CIRCUMSTANTIAL EVIDENCE 393 

in all the rights of citizenship, which the constitution of this 
country guarantees to us. It would be a poor country, indeed, 
that has the right to demand of its citizens their property and 
their lives in times of its own perils, and when perils come 
to one of its own citizens, turns its back upon him, and 
even lends a hand in his oppression. I am entitled to a fair 
trial, gentlemen; I am entitled to justice at your hands. 

If testimony can be believed ; if reason can be relied upon, 
I was not in a conspiracy with Henry E. Youtsey. Then, 
gentlemen, I am not guilty of that with which I am charged. 
I did not know Holland Whittaker ; I did not procure him 
to murder Mr. Goebel. I did not know Dick Combs ; I could 
not have procured him to murder Mr. Goebel. I did not 
know Jim Howard ; I had no communication with him ; 
I, therefore, could not have procured him to kill Mr. Goe- 
bel. The unknown man is no more ; as an actual quan- 
tity, he is no more. The prosecution, by their present theory, 
has eliminated the unknown man from this case. I, therefore, 
did not conspire with, or procure, any unknown man to kill 
Mr. Goebel. 

Then, men, how can I be guilty under this indictment? 
How can you find me guilty? You can not; you will not. 
With all the testimony of all the star-witnesses swearing for 
money and immunity, there is no testimony against me in 
this case, except circumstantial testimony, that sort of testi- 
mony that often lies, and is always unreliable. Colonel 
Campbell said in his opening argument that so far as he is 
individually concerned, he would as soon convict me on cir- 
cumstantial testimony as on any other kind of testimony. 
Why, the whole world knows that circumstantial testimony 
is the most dangerous and the most unreliable sort of testi- 
mony that can be introduced in a court of justice. 

Let me illustrate the uncertainty and unreliability of cir- 
cumstantial testimony by a story I read once. The story 
is like this: A few years ago, up in a Vermont town, in 
Chittenden County, there happened a very strange case. There 
lived in the suburbs of the quiet little village a rich old bach- 
elor. He had devoted his life to the making of money and 
had retired from an active business life to enjoy it in his 



394 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

own way. It was in everybody's mouth that he kept close 
about him, in his costly mansion, a vast deal of money. He 
kept within his palatial dwelling but one negro servant to 
attend his wants and needs. There they lived in solitude. 
It was after midnight on one cold and bleak November day 
that the neighbors were aroused by the firing of pistols in 
the costly mansion. Fearing foul play, they rushed to the 
scene of the tragedy, for such it was. They found every 
window in the house locked and the doors barred and bolted. 
They heard groans on the inside of the house. They knew 
the trouble was within. They broke down the front door 
and entered. They swept across the spacious hallway and 
rushed up to the second floor of the building to find, in the 
room always occupied by the old man, a sad scene. The 
white hairs of the old man were weltering in his own blood. 
His brains bespattered the floor, the walls and windows of his 
own room. A bullet had entered his forehead ; he was dead 
and his pistol lay grasped in his right hand. It had been 
discharged in the aflfray; it was pointed towards the door 
of his own room. Nearer the door of his room lay his col- 
ored servant, shot in face and head. It was found that the 
bullet hole in the head of the colored servant was exactly 
of the same caliber as that of the pistol iired by the master. 
This helped to confirm the story, if it needed confirmation, 
that the servant was shot by his master while attempting to 
rob him. The negro was not dead, but paralyzed by the 
blow. He was moaning and muttering inaudible sounds. 
His master's watch and jewelry lay near his hands, and a 
pistol that had been discharged twice lay near him to help 
tell the story of the old man's murder. It was several days 
before the negro was able to talk. During that time, public 
opinion had been formed. The negro's insensibility pre- 
vented him from being mobbed without judge or jury. Every- 
body said he had tried to rob his master and in the 
attempt had killed him. There was no other explanation of 
it. They were the only two in the house. The doors and 
windows were all barred and bolted when the neighbors 
gathered upon the scene. There the old man lay; the negro 
was shot in the room of the old man and had the jewelry 



CASE OF JUDICIAL MURDER 395 

of his master near his hands. As soon as the negro gained 
consciousness, he vainly pleaded his innocence. His pro- 
testation's could not save him. He was indicted and was 
given a speedy hearing. The trial proceeded. He was con- 
victed. He was convicted before the trial began. Public 
sentiment had convicted him. The jury brought in a verdict 
of guilty and said that his life should pay the penalty for his 
crime. Gentlemen, what if you had been on the jury, what 
would you have done? What would your verdict have been? 
The poor, helpless prisoner pleaded his innocence. 

What if I had been found shot and Goebel dead at the 
Capital Hotel, in Frankfort, under these circumstances, and 
that I had said that I went there to see him on some busi- 
ness, what would your verdict have been? What would it 
have been in the case of the colored servant? The poor pris- 
oner pleaded his innocence. That was the only thing he had 
on his side. He was not guilty, gentlemen. But his inno- 
cence did not save him. He was hanged. 

And, by and by, the great searchlight, " Time," was turned 
upon events. By and by the great unraveler of all mys- 
teries began to solve this problem. The negro was dead ; he 
had been judicially murdered; the jury had taken from him 
that which they could not give back to him — his life. It 
was beyond human power to restore, when the world knew 
that he was not guilty. On his deathbed a noted bank crook 
confessed to the murder of the old man, and told the circum- 
stances surrounding it. A few months before the occurrence, 
he had come to the quiet little village, as a day laborer. He 
had learned from the gossip of the townspeople the reputed 
wealth of the old bachelor. He determined to have his money. 
On the evening of the murder, a dark and cloudy day in 
November, he had slipped by stealth up the quiet lawn, under 
the somber timber and into the wide hallway and into one 
of its dark and neglected alcoves. There he remained until 
late evening came, dragging behind it the drapery of night. 
He was unobserved, as the house was large and spacious, 
with few occupants — only two. The doors and windows 
of the old home had been barred and bolted by the faithful 
old colored servant upon the approach of night, as had long 



396 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

been his custom. He went to his room thinking of no harm 
to his old master, whom he had so faithfully served, and for 
whom he had at all times been ready to give up his life. 
When the dead hours of night dragged their heavy forms 
along, when innocent humanity was locked in the arms of 
refreshing sleep, the burglar stole from his place of secret 
hiding, wound his course up the still stairway to the room of 
his victim. He crept into apartments owned by another, in 
search of gold, and found the white head of an old man lying 
upon a pillow in easy repose. He began to search for his 
jewelry and gold. The restless hours of old age were soon 
disturbed. The burglar demanded the toil of his years, or 
his life. The encounter soon began. Pistols were fired in 
quick succession. The faithful old colored man rushed to the 
scene of the difficulty, just in time to receive the shot of his 
master, and fell, groaning, to the floor. The burglar dropped 
the jewelry he had, fired a parting shot, dropped his pistol, 
and fled. The old man fell, lifeless, to the floor. The burglar 
returned to his secret hiding-place unharmed. The neighbors 
battered down the front door and swept up to the room of 
the tragedy. In the hurry and excitement of the hour, the real 
murderer passed out unnoticed and went his way, uncaught, 
unsuspected and unharmed. 

Gentlemen, the history of this world is full of such exam- 
ples. And so our lawmakers, in their wisdom, have said 
that before you can take a man's life or his liberty on 
circumstantial proof, the evidence introduced by the 
Commonwealth must be such that the crime can not be 
accounted for on any other hypothesis than the guilt of 
the accused. 

Dreyfus was sent to Devil's Island on circumstantial testi- 
mony and perjured proof. The judiciary of France is dis- 
graced for ever on account of it. On circumstantial testimony, 
Samuel Arnold, an innocent man, was sent to Dry Tortugas 
for life for alleged complicity in the assassination of Abra- 
ham Lincoln. Dr. Mudd met a similar fate. On circum- 
stantial testimony and perjured proof, Mrs. Surratt, an inno- 
cent woman, was hanged for alleged complicity in the assas- 
sination of Abraham Lincoln. America will never outlive it. 



USE OF THE MILITIA 397 

Beware, me:n, of circumstantial testimony. It is untrust- 
worthy ; it misleads ; it lies ; it deceives. 

If I did not procure some one of the five named principals 
to murder Senator Goebel, I could not be guilty, although 
there was a great deal of hot blood at Frankfort and else- 
where over the state during the contest, although the moun- 
tain crowd came to Frankfort, and although the militia was 
called out. But since there has been so much said on 
these subjects, even during this trial, a discussion of 
them may not be amiss, and we will now come to a dis- 
cussion of the military. I have tried, gentlemen, to take 
up the various contentions of the prosecution and group the 
testimony bearing upon their charge, that we might more 
clearly understand what foundation there is for such a charge. 
You know the prosecution has always said that the bringing 
of the mountain men to Frankfort was one part of the con- 
spiracy to kill Senator Goebel. It is the view of the Com- 
monwealth that the militia was another part of the alleged 
conspiracy to kill Senator Goebel ; that the part it was to 
play was to protect the men after they had done the work 
of killing Senator Goebel ; that it was to protect the criminal, 
or criminals, after the shot was fired, from arrest or from 
violence; that that was the part to be played by the military, 
and that it played that part. This is the view of the prose- 
cution. All this evidence introduced by the Commonwealth 
to show that no one was allowed to pass into the Executive 
Building after the shooting; all this testimony about the plac- 
ing of guards at the gates of the Capitol Square and doors of 
the Capitol building; and all thi's testimony about requiring 
passes before any one could be admitted to the grounds, was 
for the purpose of showing that no one, not friendly to the 
act of assassination, or those who indorsed that act, was 
permitted to pass into the grounds. And all this evidence 
about keeping men at the arsenal for months before the killing 
of Senator Goebel, is for the purpose of showing that Taylor 
and Collier and others had in view the killing of Senator 
Goebel, and that they wanted the military to be ready to run 
down to the State House and protect those who were in the 
killing after it was done. 



398 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

I do not think I have misstated the position of the prosecu- 
tion. Those engaged in the prosecution are in that contention 
as they are in others they have made, — they are either 
right or wrong. And if the militia was a part of any plan 
to kill Senator Goebel, the testimony ought to disclose the 
fact, and so far as I am individually concerned, gentlemen, I 
have never fully understood the force of the argument on the 
part of the prosecution that I should be convicted of the 
murder of Senator Goebel, if the military were used in con- 
nection with Senator Goebel's taking off. I was not a military 
officer. I didn't order out the military after Senator Goebel 
was killed; I had no connection with the military in any way; 
I have had no connection with General Collier, Colonel Dick- 
son, Colonel Mengel or Colonel Gray, who had charge of 
the military, and if, as a matter of fact, the military were 
used, as is alleged by the prosecution, I can not understand 
why I should be held responsible for its use. 

But, gentlemen, was the military so used? What does the 
evidence disclose? There are a number of witnesses both on 
the part of the defense and the prosecution who testify that 
at least a part of the military company was kept at the arsenal 
from the November election of '99 until Senator Goebel was 
killed; and there are a number of witnesses who testify that 
the militia came to the State House from within eight to fifteen 
minutes after Senator Goebel had been shot, while the wit- 
nesses for the defense say that it was from twenty to thirty-five 
minutes after Senator Goebel had been shot before the arrival 
of the military on the State House Square. And there are a 
number of witnesses who give various versions as to why the 
militia was called out at all, and the condition of affairs 
that existed at the time it was called out. It is said by 
the prosecution that the militia was called out to protect 
the guilty from arrest. It is asserted by the defense that the 
militia was called to protect the buildings and their occupants 
from mob violence. Let us look into those claims, gentlemen. 

You remember that McKenzie Todd was formerly one of 
the witnesses for the prosecution ; he was in the reception- 
room at the time the shot was fired. He told you there 
was great excitement after the fatal shot had been fired; and 



SOLDIERS WERE NECESSARY 399 

that he, for one, was so afraid of mob violence that he actually 
left his post of duty and sought safety in flight. He told 
you that he left the Executive Building and went to the home 
of Captain John Davis. 

George L. Barnes was another witness in this case who 
was in the Executive Building at the time the shot was fired. 
He tells you he went immediately to the door of the Exec- 
utive Building and that he saw Mr, Bill Jett, John E. Miles 
and others in the State House yard and heard them say 
that the thing to do was to blow up the Executive Building 
and murder all of its occupants. He told you, too, that there 
was a great deal of excitement and a great many threats made 
against the occupants of the building. 

R. N. Miller was an occupant of the reception-room at the 
time the shot was fired. He said : " The clerks were all 
excited. Everybody was asking what was the matter. The 
people began to gather out in the streets ; word was started, 
I don't know how, that they were going to mob the in- 
mates." 

Captain Steve Sharpe, that gallant ex-Confederate, told you 
that the street in front of the Capitol building was filled with 
a threatening and excited mob ; that he went to the Executive 
Building and tendered his services to Governor Taylor for the 
purpose of preventing mob violence to the occupants of the 
building if possible ; and that he, at the instance of Governor 
Taylor, gathered together as many men and guns as he could 
find for that purpose, and did station them in the Executive 
Building in order to prevent the threatened and threatening 
violence. 

Captain Delia Walcott told you of threats to hang Taylor 
and all the Republican officials. Chief Justice James H. Haz- 
elrigg and others told you of an excited crowd being in the 
streets, George Barnes told you that some of them had guns. 

If there had been no testimony to the effect that there was 
great excitement and danger of mob violence you gentlemen 
would know that from your own experience. The wildest 
excitement prevailed and the danger of mob violence was 
imminent. It is a matter of current history with which all 
are familiar that Senator Blackburn and others, three days 



400 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

after Goebel had been shot, in a card to the Democrats of the 
state, pleaded with them not to resort to mob violence. 

Now, gentlemen, from the evidence in this case, can you 
decide that the militia was a part of any conspiracy to mur- 
der Senator Goebel? The only evidence introduced on the 
part of the prosecution was to the effect that soldiers were 
kept at the arsenal ; that they were there for months before 
the assassination of Senator Goebel, and that they were on 
the State House Square after the killing within eight to 
fifteen minutes, while the defense has proved to you beyond 
all question that the " all right " telegrams had no connection 
with the killing of Senator Goebel. General Collier and 
Colonel Gray and Colonel Mengel all testify that the " all 
right " telegrams were arranged between them on the eleventh 
of January for Colonel Gray and Colonel Mengel, of the First 
Kentucky Regiment, to bring their regiment to Frankfort in 
the event of any disturbance of the public peace upon the re- 
ceipt of the telegram *' all right." These three witnesses are 
not contradicted by a single witness on that point. 

Mr. Todd, Mr. Miller, Mr. Barnes, Mr. Walcott and others 
tell you that there was great excitement at the time Senator 
Goebel was killed and that threats were made to mob the 
occupants of the Executive Building and to blow up the same. 
Miller and Shepherd told you that Captain Davis took an 
order from Governor Taylor to General Collier to call out 
the militia for the purpose, as the order expressed it, to pre- 
vent the destruction of property and the loss of human life. 
Collier tells you that he received that order. He tells you 
that he sent John Perkins up to the arsenal to tell Captain 
Walcott to bring a portion of his soldiers to the State House 
and to leave a part of them there to protect the arsenal. 

But why leave them there to protect the arsenal, gentle- 
men ? It is the contention of the prosecution that the company 
was kept at the arsenal to be in readiness to protect those who 
were in the murder of Mr. Goebel. It has been the contention 
of the defense that they were kept there to protect the prop- 
erty of the arsenal and for the purpose of suppressing any 
disturbance that might occur in Frankfort, the storm center of 
political excitement at that time. When Senator Goebel was 



ARSENAL WAS GUARDED 401 

killed, part of the men were kept at the arsenal for the pur- 
pose of protecting the property and another part was taken 
to the State House to quell any riot that might be organized. 

If the militia was kept at the arsenal for the purpose of 
assisting in the assassination of Senator Goebel, as is claimed 
by the prosecution, why were soldiers kept on guard duty at 
night at the arsenal for months before Senator Goebel was 
killed? Why keep soldiers on guard at night at all? Nobody 
will contend that soldiers could be used in the night time for 
the purpose of protecting the assassins of Senator Goebel from 
arrest. Then why were there walking sentinels, guarding the 
arsenal at night time? There could have been but one object, 
and that to protect the property of the arsenal from seizure, 
as is claimed by the defense. There can be no doubt the 
arsenal was guarded in the night time by three reliefs of 
soldiers. Julian Kersey, a Commonwealth's witness, told you 
that. Then the claim on the part of the defense that the 
soldiers were kept at the arsenal for the purpose of protect- 
ing the property is proven by witnesses for the Common- 
wealth. Now, what about the other part of the claim of the 
defense that they were kept there to suppress any disorder 
that might arise and that they were called out immediately 
after the shooting of Senator Goebel for the purpose of pro- 
tecting the occupants and the attaches of the Capitol build- 
ings from mob violence? Let us see. Sam Shepherd told 
you that immediately after the shot was fired, he advised 
Taylor to call out the troops. Taylor, in his deposition, told 
you that he issued such orders. R. N. Miller told you that 
Captain John Davis carried those orders to General Collier. 
General Collier told you that he received those orders and 
that he sent John Perkins to the arsenal with orders to bring 
a part of the military company stationed there to the State 
House grounds. 

John Perkins tells you that he carried those orders from 
General Collier to Captain Walcott. Collier and John Perkins 
both tell you that Senator Goebel had been carried out of the 
State House grounds before he left the State House to de- 
liver the message. Captain Walcott tells you that he received 
the message at the hands of John Perkins, the janitor, and 



402 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

that they took a number of soldiers that had been ordered out 
to the State House grounds and stationed them at the various 
gates and at the entrance to the various public buildings occu- 
pied by the Republican officials. 

There is a difference of opinion as to when the company at 
the arsenal reached the State House grounds. The prosecu- 
tion attempted to make it appear that the company at the 
arsenal had received its orders to be in readiness to march 
to the State House grounds and protect those who, they claim, 
were concerned in the killing of Goebel, before the shot had 
ever been fired ; but there is no evidence upon that point, gen- 
tlemen, and if the prosecution is right in its contention that 
the military company at the arsenal knew that Senator Goebel 
was going to be killed before he was killed, and was there in 
readiness to march to the State House grounds for the pur- 
pose of protecting those committing the murder, then those 
men in that military company, too, gentlemen, are guilty of 
the awful crime of murder; and I ask you, Mr. Franklin, 
why it is that these thirty men comprising the military com- 
pany who were stationed at the arsenal at that time have not 
been indicted for complicity in the murder? 

They live in Franklin County, the county of your home. 
They are within a few hundred yards of your residence, and 
if they had knowledge that Senator Goebel was going to be 
killed, and did, as a matter of fact, go to protect those who 
did the killing, they are as guilty in the eyes of the law as 
the man firing the shot, and why have they not been appre- 
hended and convicted? 

That they have not is proof positive to my mind that, so far 
as the militia at the arsenal is concerned, Mr. Franklin and 
these gentlemen do not believe that they had aught to do with 
the killing of Senator Goebel. And if the prosecution is right 
that the militia was to be used for the purpose of protecting 
those who were guilty of the murder of Senator Goebel from 
violence or arrest, then those who so used the militia should 
be held accountable for their conduct. If one of the vast 
throng of men who are here in the court house should step 
down on the streets of Georgetown and kill a man, it would 
not be fair or just, gentlemen, for you or me to be taken up 



WHO CONTROLLED THE MILITIA 403 

and tried for the offense, and let the man who did the killing 
go free. 

If the militia was used for the purpose of protecting the one 
who killed Senator Goebel from arrest or violence, then Gen- 
eral Dan Collier, Colonel J. K. Dixon, Col. C. C. Mengel and 
Colonel Gray used the militia for that purpose. Collier was 
the adjutant general of the state. He was in supreme com- 
mand of all the forces of the state, subject to the orders of the 
chief executive. Collier ordered the militia from the arsenal to 
the State House after the killing of Senator Goebel, and got 
the troops on the ground, according to these gentlemen, from 
within ten to fifteen minutes after the shooting. Collier sent 
out telegrams all over the state to the various military com- 
panies to come to Frankfort at once. In fact, the whole of the 
militia of the state was called out. He had arranged with 
Colonel Gray and Colonel Mengel, of Louisville, for them 
to bring all their forces, the troops, ammunition, arms and 
men, upon the receipt of the telegram " all right." Colonel 
Mengel tells you that Colonel Gray and General Collier met 
him in Louisville and arranged with him what " all right " 
meant and what he should do upon the receipt of such a tele- 
gram. Then, of course, gentlemen. Colonel Mengel and 
Colonel Gray were also in the conspiracy to kill Senator 
Goebel, if the militia formed a part of that conspiracy, as 
these gentlemen claim. There is no escape from that con- 
clusion. 

I have had nothing to do with the militia. I was not a 
military officer. And there is no proof in this record that I 
ever had aught to do with the militia, except the bringing 
of the mountain men to Frankfort ; a part of them were 
men who belonged to the military company, but this was five 
days before Senator Goebel was killed, and the great mass 
of these men had gone back to their homes. I had nothing 
to do with the men at the arsenal. I had nothing to do with 
the ordering out of the troops. I took no part in the assem- 
bling of the men after the killing of Senator Goebel to the 
State House Square. Then, if that was a part of the con- 
spiracy to kill Senator Goebel, it was a part of the conspiracy 
with which I had nothing to do, and it was a part of the 



404 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

conspiracy, if conspiracy it was, with which General Col- 
lier, J. K. Dixon, Colonel C. C. Mengel and Colonel Gray did 
have to do ; not only those men, gentlemen, but every man 
who brought his military company to Frankfort to be used 
for that purpose. 

Then, if the militia was a part of the conspiracy to kill 
Senator Goebel, I ask you why, Mr. Franklin, you have 
not indicted those who had charge of the militia? also the 
men at the arsenal ? If the use of the militia was a part of 
the plan by which the murder of Senator Goebel was to be 
accomplished, then I ask you why you have not indicted the 
militia? Why have you not indicted General Collier and 
Colonel Gray and Colonel Dixon and Colonel Mengel? I ask 
you why, Mr. Franklin. I want you not only to tell this jury 
why, but I ask you to tell this country why. Tell us why, Mr. 
Franklin, tell us why. I had nothing to do with the militia. 
And if the use of the militia was part of a plan to accom- 
plish the murder of Senator Goebel, then I had nothing to 
do with that part. Then why did you indict me and let Gen- 
eral Collier and these other gentlemen escape? If these men 
were in a conspiracy to kill Senator Goebel, then they ought 
to be punished. Colonel Dixon has walked the streets of 
Frankfort much from the day of the killing of Senator Goebel 
until this good day, living as your neighbor, sir, in your very 
town ; he is living there now. As an honest man and an 
honest officer, why have you not apprehended and punished 
him, if he is guilty of the murder of Senator Goebel? Gen- 
eral Collier has told you time and time again that if you 
wanted him, he would come to you, and save you any trouble 
in sending after him. If the militia were a part of a con- 
spiracy to kill Senator Goebel, why have you not indicted him? 
Why have you not indicted Colonel Gray and Colonel Men- 
gel? Will any one contend, seriously, that the soldiers were 
kept in the arsenal at Frankfort before the November election 
for the purpose of killing Mr. Goebel before it was known 
who was elected or defeated ; or kept there for the purpose 
of protecting those to be engaged in killing off enough Re- 
publicans in the Legislature to give the Democrats a majority, 
when it was not known they would have a majority. 



NO MILITARY CONSPIRACY 405 

By your own conduct, there is only one of the two con- 
clusions that can be drawn. The militia was either not a part 
of the conspiracy, or you, Mr. Franklin, have sat idly and 
unconcernedly by and witnessed vile conspirators murder one 
of your party associates and then stalk over this land undis- 
turbed by those whose sworn duty it is to prosecute violators 
of the criminal law. 

It is no answer to say that you will do it in the future. 
You know the law in this state is that persons who conspire to 
commit murder can be indicted in any county in the state in 
which any part of the plan to murder was consummated. If 
the bringing of the mountain men to Frankfort was a part of 
the conspiracy to murder Senator Goebel, then the men who 
came to Frankfort could have been indicted in any county 
through which they came. They could have been indicted in 
Fayette County, or in Madison County, or in the county of 
Clark. If the militia were a part of the conspiracy, then Gray 
and Mengel could have been indicted in Louisville. Or they 
could have been indicted in Franklin County, and you could 
have sent the cases to Bourbon and Woodford and Owen and 
the adjoining judicial districts for trial. You have had terms 
of court upon terms of court in Franklin and Scott counties, 
at which they might have been tried. Then, you have con- 
fessed by your own conduct that the militia formed no part 
of the conspiracy to kill Senator Goebel ; and if it did, gentle- 
men, I had nothing to do with the militia and should not be 
held responsible for the acts of some one else. 

You have not indicted the military officers and the con- 
clusion must, therefore, be reached that the militia was not 
used by anybody for the purpose of protecting the one, or 
ones, responsible for the killing of Senator Goebel. 

Why is there such a thing as the militia of the state ? What 
should it be used for? You read of the militia being called 
out to protect human life here, and human life there ; called 
out to prevent the destruction of property; called out to sup- 
press riot and prevent bloodshed, — that is what the militia is 
for, gentlemen. That is the reason that you pay taxes to pay 
the salary of the gentlemen who have charge of the militia of 
the state, its equipments and expenses. 



4o6 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

The defense asserts that the state had been in a fever of 
excitement for many months. The defense maintains that in 
every city, in every towxi, in every community and at every 
cross-roads of the Commonwealth the people were stirred 
to their very depths. The contention of the defense is that 
even before the killing of Senator Goebel there had not existed 
such bitter feeling between neighbor and neighbor and be- 
tween friend and friend since the late war as existed in this 
state prior to and following the killing of Senator Goebel. 
Our contention is, gentlemen, that the intensity of feeling was 
such that it divided homes of this country; that father and 
son would not sleep under the same roof; that it divided 
and separated congregation and pastor and that partners in 
business dissolved partnership. That is our contention. 

We say that neighbor was arrayed against neighbor; and 
that wherever men met whose political opinions were not the 
same there was always danger of an outburst ; that the whole 
of Kentucky was like a powder-house, ready to explode at any 
time and on the least provocation. Our contention is that 
Frankfort was the storm-center of all the angry passions of the 
state; that there the excitement was the greatest and the 
antagonism the sharpest; that there bitter feeling was the 
highest ; that there were two forces, one on the one side threat- 
ening to take forcible possession of the offices, and one on the 
other side saying they should not do that. Everybody knows 
how barely civil strife in the state, civil war in the state, was 
averted. 

Our contention is, gentlemen, that it was the duty of those 
who had charge of the militia of the state to keep it in readi- 
ness at all times to quell any disturbance that might arise. 
It was as much the duty of the militia to quell a disturbance 
that might have arisen between the two political forces at 
Frankfort, as it was to stop any other disturbance that might 
have arisen anywhere else in the state. 

And if Taylor and Collier and others called out the militia 
for the purpose of keeping down mob violence, as they assert, 
it was certainly the duty of the men who had been placed to 
guard the gates, the doors and the entrances, not to let any 
one pass through the lines without a permit. You go to any 



MY INVESTIGATION 407 

camp of soldiers and you will find the whole guarded by 
walking sentinels, and all who enter must know the counter- 
sign, or have a written permit from the commanding officer. 
Any other arrangement would not be military. Go to West 
Point, go to Fort Thomas, go to the encampment of the State 
Guards of this state, and you will find they all do it. In 
every war that this country has ever had, there was never a 
regiment of men, there was never a soldier camp that was 
not guarded in this way from the enemy, if it was well man- 
aged from a military point of view. 

That was what was done at Frankfort. The Common- 
wealth asserts that the square was barricaded for the purpose 
of protecting the assassin from arrest, while the defense main- 
tains it was for the purpose of preventing mob violence. So 
far as I am individually concerned, gentlemen, I do not know 
why it was done. I was not a party to it; I had nothing to do 
with it; I am not responsible for it. But if the evidence and 
reason can be relied upon, the militia was called out to pro- 
tect the occupants of the Executive Building from mob vio- 
lence. Taylor did not do what I would have done. After 
the militia had been thrown around the State House yard I 
would not have let anybody either in or out until I had sent 
for some intimate friend of Senator Goebel and discussed 
with him the best means of bringing the guilty to justice; 
and I would have admitted to those grounds as many city 
officials as there were in Frankfort, and would have rendered 
them every service within my power to determine who were 
the guilty and help bring about their arrest. 

After I got back to Frankfort from Louisville, I did what 
I could to investigate it. I sent J. B. Matthews, at my own 
expense, to Louisville to see Miss Weist, to learn if she knew 
anything about the killing. Youtsey's conduct aroused my 
suspicion. I knew that her office joined his at the time of 
the tragedy. I learned that she was in her office. I wanted 
to see what she knew. I told Grant Roberts and the two 
Sweeney boys, who worked in the same office with Youtsey, 
to find out all they could about his conduct and report 
to me. Would I have done that if I had been impli- 
cated with Henry Youtsey in the murder of Mr. Goebel? 



4o8 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

I told McKenzie Todd that I wanted a full investigation of 
the case. This was before I was arrested, and when suspicion 
rested upon my office. I told him the same after I was 
arrested. I told Matthews I wanted a full and complete in- 
vestigation of the murder of Senator Goebel. I employed 
J. B. Matthews to run down the assassin. He tried it. He 
wanted assistance. He told George Hemphill and myself in 
my office before my arrest that Detective T. R. Griffin, of 
Somerset, was a trustworthy and reliable detective ; that he 
would let the facts remain where he found them ; that he would 
expose the guilty, and in so doing would shield and save the 
innocent. I agreed that Griffin be called in. He was called 
in and put to work on the case. This was before my arrest, 
but after it was charged that the fatal shot came from 
my office. Griffin was told that I would try to get the Louis- 
ville defense committee, through my attorneys, to set apart 
a portion of the defense fund to pay for detective service. 
This was not accomplished, and Griffin was told to go ahead 
with his investigations and unearth the guilty, if possible, 
and for his services rely upon the reward offered by the 
Commonwealth for the conviction of the guilty. Griffin prom- 
ised to do this. I had no money of my own to employ him. 
I did what I could to expose the guilty. I advised with 
Judge Yost and Governor Bradley about going to the prose- 
cution and telling them what I had found out and offering 
my assistance, but I was advised that I would be misunder- 
stood. 

Taylor did not do what I would have done. He might have 
acted differently in a cooler moment, and he might not. I do 
not know anything about that, but if he did wrong, in that, 
or any other particular, am I to suffer for the wrongs of 
others? Am I to be held responsible for some other man's ill 
judgment? Keep this one point in view, gentlemen: remem- 
ber that I was not a military officer, and that there is no proof 
whatever in this whole record that tends to show that I had 
aught to do with the militia, I brought some of the com- 
panies of citizens from Eastern Kentucky, five days before the 
killing of Senator Goebel, but they had gone home and I 
did not have the remotest thing to do with surrounding the 



BLOW AT CONSPIRACY THEORY 409 

State House square with the militia after the killing of Sen- 
ator Goebel, and, therefore, gentlemen, I could not have had 
the praise, if it was right, nor the blame, if it was wrong. 

But there is one thing, gentlemen, that must convince all 
sober-minded men that the surrounding of the State House 
with militia, after the shooting of Senator Goebel ; the sending 
of the telegrams " all right," and the calling out of the militia 
after the killing of Senator Goebel, formed no part of a con- 
spiracy to murder him. You remember that Colonel Gray and 
General Collier met and had a conference about the telegrams 
" all right ; " at any rate. Colonel Gray understood what to do 
when he received the telegrams " all right," — that he was to 
take his men to Frankfort at once with all equipments. He 
did that 

Then, if the calling out of the militia, after the killing of 
Senator Goebel, was a part of the plan to kill Senator Goebel, 
then Colonel Gray was in that and understood the plan and 
acted in concert with the other military officers in getting the 
militia to Frankfort, in response to the telegrams, " all right." 
Then Colonel Gray must have been a party to that part of 
the conspiracy. Colonel Gray was, and is, as far as I know, 
a Democrat. He was one of Mr. Goebel's supporters. Then, 
you are asking us to believe that one of his own political 
friends entered into a plot to bring about his death. 

That, gentlemen, is not reasonable. The idea of any set 
of men taking a Goebel Democrat into a conspiracy to murder 
Goebel ! This is proof positive, to my mind, gentlemen, that 
the militia formed no part of a plan to kill Senator Goebel. 
The fact that Colonel Gray is a Goebel Democrat and the 
fact that Mr. Franklin has not indicted Collier and Dixon 
and Gray and Mengel and these other men who had charge 
of the militia, is convincing evidence, to my mind, that Mr. 
Franklin does not believe that the use of the militia formed 
any part of a plan or plot to kill Senator Goebel, or he would 
have certainly indicted these men and brought them to justice. 

And for whatever purpose the militia may have been used, 
I had nothing to do with the militia. Will you convict me 
for the deeds of others ? No ; you will not. You surely 
can not. I beseech you never to let it be recorded in the pages 



410 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

of Kentucky history, a state whose record is already black 
enough with crime, that a jury of that state, in the morning 
of this new century, the best century in all this world's his- 
tory, with all the achievements of the mighty past thrown 
at our feet, with all the deeds of noble manhood and splendid 
womanhood to light our path to duty — let it not be said, 
gentlemen, that in response to the wild clamor for revenge on 
the part of interested detectives, known perjurers, and blatant 
partizans, you were induced to rob a young Kentuckian of his 
good name, put the stripes of a felon around his limbs and 
hurry him off to a living death. And all this, gentlemen, 
with the eyes of a civilized world looking on. 

This trial, gentlemen, is not merely of to-day. It will live 
as long as our state's doings are read. This trial is not over 
when this jury is dismissed and you start for your homes. 
As far as my individual liberty is concerned, that will have 
been settled. But, at its conclusion, will begin the trial of 
you, gentlemen, and this court, before the great bar of public 
opinion. Yea, that trial has already begun. And, ultimately, 
gentlemen, the integrity of the courts of our state and their 
reputation for fair dealing will be determined in accordance 
with the merits of the case. The public, yea, posterity, may 
have its deflections here and there in arriving at just con- 
clusions; prejudice may, for a while, blind the eyes of men; 
temporary interests may for a time warp their sensibilities and 
distort their judgment, but in the end their judgment will be 
clarified, and a just and impartial conclusion will be reached 
concerning the merits of this controversy. 

If you do not know the right of it ; if you are not able to 
see the right of it ; if you can not be satisfied beyond all doubt 
that I am guilty, it is your duty, under the law and under 
your oaths, to give me my liberty. You have sworn that you 
would do that. You can not know that I am guilty, because 
I am not. And in this state of uncertainty, where everybody 
is wishing to know the truth and where nobody seems to 
know it, had you not rather be able to say in the future: 
" If I erred at all, it was upon the side of mercy and hu- 
manity." You would take pride in saying that all the days 
of your life. Your friends would take pride in saying it 



I PLEAD FOR MY LIFE 411 

of you. They might be disappointed for the time. I know 
full well the prejudice that exists in this case. But that 
feeling is rapidly giving away and by and by those who 
have been most cruel and vindictive will be remembered 
by their neighbors as men who can not be trusted to do 
the right thing when pressure is brought to bear upon them. 
When human life and human liberty are at stake, men should 
be careful not to be influenced by any consideration other 
than the guilt or innocence of the accused, and they should 
know that he is guilty before they lay hands upon his liberty. 
Governor Crittenden, in speaking of what care and caution 
jurors should use when human liberty and human life were at 
Stake, and how sure they should be that the defendant was 
guilty before they bring in a verdict of guilty, addressed a 
jury thus: " But upon the other hand, if you should feel that 
there ought to have been a verdict of guilty, your conscience 
will be easily satisfied. You will say: If I erred, it was upon 
the side of mercy, thank God ; I incurred no hazard of con- 
demning a man who might have been innocent. How dif- 
ferent the memory from that which may come at any calm 
moment, by day or night, knocking at the door of your 
heart, and reminding you that in a case where you were 
doubtful, by your verdict, you sent an innocent man to dis- 
grace and to death. Oh ! gentlemen, pronounce no such ver- 
dict. I beseech you not to do it, except on the most clear and 
certain and solid grounds. If you err, for your own sake, as 
well as for that of the defendant, keep on the side of humanity 
and save him from such a dishonorable fate ; preserve your- 
selves from so bitter a memory. It will not do, then, to 
plead to your consciences any subtle technicalities and nice 
logic; such cunning of the mind will never satisfy the heart 
of an honest man. The case must be one that speaks for 
itself; that requires no reasoning; that, without argument, 
appeals to the understanding and strikes conviction to the 
very heart. Unless it does that, you abuse yourselves, abuse 
your consciences, and irrevocably wrong your fellow man by 
pronouncing him guilty. It is life, it is blood, with which 
you have to deal, and beware that you peril not your own 
peace." 



412 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

These are the words of one of Kentucky's greatest gov- 
ernors ; one of Kentucky's greatest Democrats ; one of Ken- 
tucky's greatest men. He says that the case must be one 
that speaks for itself. One that requires no reasonings and 
no argument, but strikes conviction to the very heart. He 
says that unless it does this you abuse yourselves and your 
conscience and irrevocably w^rong your fellow man, by pro- 
nouncing a verdict of guilty. Oh, my God! Is this case 
such an one that strikes conviction into your heart without 
argument? He says that "it is life, it is blood, with which 
you have to deal, and beware that you imperil not your own 
peace." 

This occasion will soon fly by ; these prosecutions will soon 
be over. Whatever the verdict in this case, the affairs of 
this great world will still go on, and if the Democratic 
party in this state ; if the prosecution in this case ; if the 
brothers of Senator Goebel really want to try Governor 
Taylor for alleged complicity in the murder of their brother, 
they will soon have that opportunity if you will do justice 
in this case. As soon as I am acquitted, as I deserve to be, 
Taylor will be surrendered for trial by the Indiana authori- 
ties. If you want to try him in these courts, instead of me, 
you have that opportunity. I think I know whereof I speak. 

But, leaving out of consideration the question of policy and 
expediency, justice demands that I be given my liberty. I 
implore you, gentlemen, to do the right thing in this case. 
Your days on earth may not be many. I beg of you not to 
ruin both yours and mine. The Almighty seems to have 
been in the wake of those who have been doing wrong in 
these cases. At any rate, gentlemen, whatever may have been 
the cause of it, those who have been most vindictive have 
met with misfortune. 

They ask you to rob me of the brightest jewel of life — my 
good name, my honor, ah, even life itself. Your faces, gentle- 
men, tell me that you will never do it. It was not enough 
to take my office from me, break me up and reduce me 
to poverty and want. But they throw me in chains and brand 
me as a red-handed murderer for resisting, in a legitimate 
way, the taking of my office. They brand me as a felon for 



THE MOUNTAINEERS 413 

doing that which any honest man on earth would have done. 
They have not done right by me, gentlemen. It is wrong; it 
is cruel ; it is barbarous ; it is an awful crime against me 
and a brutal and dangerous stab at our courts of justice and 
our country's honor. 

Let us now take up the charge on the part of the prosecution 
that the bringing of the mountain crowd to Frankfort con- 
stituted a part of the conspiracy to murder William Goebel. 

In order that you, gentlemen, may understand fully my mo- 
tives in bringing that crowd to Frankfort, you must put your- 
selves in my place. The best rule I have ever discovered, 
gentlemen, to know whether I have been wronged or insulted 
or mistreated by anybody, if I am in doubt about it, is to put 
myself in his place and surround myself by that which sur- 
rounds him, and see what I would have done under like cir- 
cumstances. And that is the intention of the law, gentlemen, 
in the trial of those accused. It is the duty of the jury to put 
themselves, as nearly as possible, in the place of the accused, 
when he is supposed to have committed the crime with which 
he is charged. I ask you to do that in this case. 

Over three years have elapsed, gentlemen, since the crime 
of which I am accused was committed. It would be unfair 
to me for you, gentlemen, who are here in the quietude of 
this little city, where the strifes and turmoils of three years 
ago are not now felt, and scarcely realized, to try me from 
the jury-box here. I ask you to go with me back to those 
unhappy days and put yourself in my place. 

Suppose, Mr. Wyatt, you had been elected to the office of 
secretary of state, as I was elected. Suppose that you had 
spent months in trying to get the nomination; suppose that 
after you had spent much time and money, you finally suc- 
ceeded in getting the nomination at the hands of your party; 
suppose that after you had been nominated you entered upon 
a hard canvass for the election ; suppose that after many 
months of trying labor you were finally elected to the high 
office of secretary of state ; suppose that the Republican party 
of the state had the election machinery of the state in its 
hands ; suppose that the party had put a law in the stat- 
ute books of the state, whereby the Legislature had the power 



414 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

to appoint a state board of three election commissioners; 
suppose that the state board of election commissioners had 
the power to appoint a county board of election commissioners 
in every county in the state; suppose that the county boards 
had the power to appoint the election officers in every voting 
precinct in this state ; suppose that the three state election 
commissioners all affiliated with the Republican party and that 
the law which gave them their being gave them the power 
to appoint all three of the election commissioners in each 
county from the same political party. 

Suppose that the members of the county board and the 
three members of the state board were clothed with ministerial 
as well as judicial powers. In other words, that they not 
only had the right to tabulate the returns of the election 
and to issue the certificate of election to whomsoever they 
desired to have the office, but that they sat as a court to try 
all contested cases. In other words, if they had issued the 
certificate of election to your Republican opponent, they would 
then, under the law which had been framed, sit as a court 
to decide whether they had done the right thing or the wrong 
thing, when they issued to your Republican opponent the certi- 
ficate of election. Suppose that the precinct election officers 
and various county boards did on divers occasions throw out 
the legal votes which you had received; suppose that several 
precincts over the state had been contested by your Republi- 
can opponent on one flimsy pretext after another, and that 
the election officers had refused to count that vote; sup- 
pose, that several whole counties had been contested where 
you had received a large majority over your opponent, and 
that the county boards had refused to count the votes of these 
counties, alleging the votes had been cast on ballots too thick 
or too thin. 

Suppose that when the matter came up for decision, the 
state board of election commissioners, all three of whom 
were partizan Republicans, but two of whom were lawyers 
and honest men, decided that they were only acting then in 
their ministerial capacity, and that it was their duty, under 
the law, their politics notwithstanding, to give the certificate 
of election to yourself and the rest of your Democratic col- 



AN IMAGINARY CASE 415 

leagues on the Democratic ticket. Suppose that a majority 
of the board did do all this, and that you were regularly and 
legally installed in office. Suppose that your Republican 
opponent was not satisfied with that, but declared his in- 
tention of still prosecuting the contest. Suppose that the 
two Republicans who had decided for you, in order to get 
out of the unpleasant predicament in which they were placed, 
resigned their positions and left the one member who remained, 
and who had decided against you, to appoint two other mem- 
bers to act with him in the decision of the contest. Suppose 
that he appointed two Republicans, whom he knew would 
decide with him, and against you; suppose he declared his 
intention of doing that very thing; and that one of the men 
whom he appointed declared, through the public press, his 
position on the matter before it came before him as judge, ^ 
and that he said in substance that he would decide for the 
Republicans when it came to him. Suppose that these two 
men appointed a third member equally partizan; suppose that 
the trial came up before these three gentlemen; that you file 
an affidavit stating that they would not give you a fair trial, 
and that you did not want them to try your case. Suppose 
that they said in response, there was no law whereby you 
could swear them off the bench, and that they proposed to try 
your case ; that the law under which they were serving gave 
them the right to decide your case, in spite of the fact that 
they had already virtually said they would decide your case 
against you. 

Suppose the very law that gave them the right to so act 
upon your case, over your objection and your protest, said in 
plain words that the decision of the men, who refused to be 
sworn off the bench and who had already expressed them- 
selves in your case, should be final and conclusive. In other 
words, when they decided against you, which they were 
declaring they would do, that you could not take your case 
to any other court for relief; that their decision settled 
it; that It was a peculiar court; that it differed from the cir- 
cuit court in that, if it decided against you, you could not 
carry your case to a higher court for relief. That in that 
particular it had privileges denied the circuit court. That it 



4i6 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

was .a higher court than the court of appeals, in that the 
court of appeals could not review its findings; that its de- 
cisions were too sacred to be touched by human hands. Sup- 
pose they should say: It does not matter what we decide; 
that settles it. We have the power to throw out the votes 
of one county in the state, if we want to. We can throw out 
two, if we like, and that still is our business. 

Suppose, Mr. Wyatt, that you, as a Democrat, received 
seventy-five thousand majority over your Republican opponent 
and that the state board of election commissioners was de- 
claring it to be its intention to throw out the votes of the 
county of Scott, and the county of Grant, and the county 
of Franklin, and the county of Owen, and the county of Henry, 
which gave you a majority. They would not touch the vote of 
Knox County, although the same grounds existed for not 
counting the vote of that county as existed for not counting 
the votes of Scott and Grant and other counties. Suppose 
that it had been in their power to throw out the vote of every 
county in this state that gave a Democratic majority. Then 
it would have been in the power of those three Republicans 
to control absolutely the distribution of the offices of this 
state, the vote of the people to the contrary notwithstanding. 

Suppose that these three Republican commissioners were 
under no bond to discharge their duty. Suppose that you 
were unable, by reason of the law under which they were 
serving, to bring a civil suit for damages. Suppose that there 
was no law to punish them criminally for the basest and most 
flagrant violation of their sworn duty. 

Suppose that, in addition, gentlemen, the capital of this 
state was at Barboursville, Knox County, my home. Suppose 
that these three Republican commissioners were sitting there 
in the heart of that Republican stronghold. You would ex- 
pect to find all the town authorities and officials Republicans, 
all the police of the town Republicans. Suppose that the con- 
test of your case was going on under these conditions. 

What would you have done, Mr. Mitchell? You have been 
elected to one of the highest offices of the state by the great 
Democratic party. You had been commissioned by a ma- 
jority of a Republican returning board to go to Barboursville 



BUT ONE COURSE 417 

to take charge of the office to which you had been elected. 
Suppose two Republican commissioners had given you your 
seat and you were there discharging, as best you could, the 
duties of that office. The Republicans, after it had been 
given to you, were declaring it to be their purpose to take 
the office from you, and were proceeding to do it under the 
conditions which I have described. You were chosen by the 
Democrats of the state to look after their interests. The 
Republicans were threatening to overturn the voice of the 
people. They were declaring it to be their purpose to make 
slaves of the people of the Democratic party ; slaves so far as 
the right to vote, and have their vote counted as cast, was 
concerned. You had been elected ; you were their representa- 
tive ; they were looking to you and the other members of the 
ticket to protect and uphold their rights of citizenship. 

Now, what would you have done, gentlemen, in a case of 
that sort? You would have been forced to do something. 
The law that the Republicans enacted for the purpose of rob- 
bing you was on the statute books. Under that law, they had 
their officers serving. Under it, they were empowered to take 
your office from you ; and from whose decision, the law itself 
said, there was no appeal possible to any court in the land for 
relief. 

I ask you what you would have done, Mr. Engle? Would 
you have crept quietly out of the town of Barboursville on the 
first train, gone to your home and said to your mother, with 
trembling lips : " Those Republican's have contested the elec- 
tion of my office ; they are threatening to take it from me ; 
there is a great deal of excitement up there ; I am afraid 
I am going to be hurt ; I wish you would tuck me quietly 
to rest in my little baby bed, where I can sleep and rest and 
where no harm can befall me, and let me remain there until 
this excitement is over. I am my mother's dear little boy, 
and I must not be in any place where danger might befall 
me." 

Would you have done that, Mr. Engle? You would have 
been compelled to do something. You either had to stand 
your ground and contend and fight, if necessary, for the right 
and liberty of your people or hoist the white flag and surren- 



4i8 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

der. What would you have done, gentlemen? You know 
what you would have done, and so would I. There is not a 
man of you but what would have stood your ground. You, 
Mr. Wyatt, wfth your white locks and matured and ripened 
judgment, would have nailed your integrity high in the heavens 
and would have stood your ground until the last drop of your 
blood was drunk up by the soil of your state. You know that 
you would. You know that you would not have run to your 
home and, from that quiet and restful and undisturbed re- 
treat, watched the proceedings from a distance. 

Would you not have come to your home people, to the 
people of Scott, Woodford, Henry, Owen and Bourbon coun- 
ties, and asked them to go with you up to Barboursville 
and there, by petition and protest and remonstrance, begged 
those in power not to disfranchise yourselves and your coun- 
trymen, when such conduct on your part was indorsed and 
sanctioned by the leaders of your party? You might not have 
taken your guns along, but more than likely you would, if you 
had been going to the heart of Republicanism in this state. 
More than likely you would, if you knew those among whom 
you were to go were armed to the teeth. 

If you had not tried to arouse the people to protest; if 
you had not tried to influence, by petition, those who held 
the fate of your office and the liberty of the people of your 
state in their hands, I ask you to tell me what you would 
have done? Would you have sat tamely around on the 
streets of Barboursville and have said that it looks as if they 
are going to rob us ; folded up your arms and sighed over 
what you were about to lose? Or would you have, by every 
legitimate mean's in your power, tried to preserve, intact, the 
liberties of the people and prevent the fair name of your 
state from being stigmatized with the robbery of the dearest 
right of Kentucky's freemen? 

Gentlemen, that is what I tried to do in all good faith. 
What was left to the people to do but petition and remon- 
strate? What could they do but plead with those in power 
not to take from them their dearest rights and most valued 
privileges? I did go to the mountains, gentlemen, and I 
brought the men down there. I felt that I was doing my duty 



NOT IN FRANKFORT TO SLAY 419 

to my state. I did not know but what similar expeditions 
might come from other parts of the state. I did not know 
but the voice of the people might be heeded, if that voice 
could be raised sufficiently loud to protest. 

It was as natural for me to go to the mountains to 
get men as it would have been for you men to come to the 
counties of Scott and Woodford and Bourbon, the counties 
of your home. I did not dream of a conspiracy to murder 
Mr. Goebel. If I had wanted to kill him, why should I have 
wanted to bring one thousand men to Frankfort to commit 
the crime? If the presence of mountain people in Frankfort 
was necessary to the death of Mr. Goebel, why did I not have 
him killed with the first crowd I brought to Frankfort? The 
testimony is in this record, gentlemen, that I brought some 
three hundred or four hundred men to Frankfort when the 
election commissioners were passing upon the question as to 
whom belonged the certificate of election. For what purpose 
did they come to Frankfort, gentlemen? If the last crowd 
was brought to Frankfort for the purpose of killing Mr. Goe- 
bel, as these men assert, why was it necessary to bring the 
third crowd to Frankfort before doing the work? There 
were three hundred or four hundred men in Frankfort from 
the mountains soon after these contests were first instituted. 
That was more than there were in Frankfort at the time 
Senator Goebel was killed. If the presence of mountain 
men was necessary for the killing of Senator Goebel, why 
was he not killed at that time? What sense was there in 
bringing these mountain men to Frankfort for the purpose of 
killing Mr. Goebel? And the second crowd came from the 
twelfth to the seventeenth of January. There were some one 
hundred and fifty of them — as many as were in Frankfort at 
the time Senator Goebel was killed. 

Why bring these men to Frankfort and let them go away, if 
it was the purpose to have some one of them kill Sen- 
ator Goebel, or protect the men in the building after it was 
done? Answer me that. If I had been base enough to have 
Senator Goebel killed at all, I was base enough at the 
time the first crowd of men came to Frankfort and I could 
have had him killed at that time, I suppose, as easily a"s I 



420 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

could have had him killed later. If a mountain crowd was 
brought there for that purpose, as is asserted, tell me why it 
was ever necessary to bring more than one. Why was the 
first crowd of four hundred men permitted to come to Frank- 
fort and go away without doing the work? Tell me that, 
gentlemen. Why was the second crowd ever permitted to come 
to Frankfort and return to their homes without doing the 
work ? Tell me that ! 

If I could have got some member of the last crowd to 
do it, I see no reason why I could not have got some member 
of the first or second crowd to do it, just as easily. Do you 
see any reason why I could not have done it, gentlemen; 
could not have done it just as easily? 

The first crowd was brought there for the purpose of 
showing the interest the people felt in the subject matter, 
concerning which these commissioners had to deal. Judge 
Pryor and Captain Ellis were honorable men. They both had 
bieen elevated by the people to positions of trust and honor; 
the people had confidence in them, and whether they decided 
that we had been legally elected because it was a fact, and out 
of deference to the will of the people expressed at the polls, 
or whether they did it as a cold, unsympathizing proposition 
of law, or whether they did it becau'se it was right, and 
because the people were demanding fair play, we may never 
know; at any rate, the people did come to Frankfort at that 
time and the fact remains that the decision of that board was 
in harmony with the wishes and views of the people who came 
to Frankfort from the mountains when that canvassing board 
was in session. 

We believed that their coming to Frankfort had a good 
effect, and if one crowd had a good effect, why should not an- 
other crowd have a good effect also when it came on the same 
mission? The first crowd of people came to Frankfort solely 
for the moral effect ; so did the third. Do you suppose, for one 
moment, gentlemen, that I would have brought one thousand 
men to Frankfort if it had been my purpose to have Senator 
Goebel killed? They assert that these men were all con- 
spirators. Do you suppose that I would have taken into my 
confidence one thousand conspirators? Would I have held a 



NO CROWD OF CONSPIRATORS 421 

meeting in the Agricultural office for the purpose of having 
murder committed by men who had never before seen each 
other? Would I have given out money in such large sums so 
publicly and so promiscuously? Would I have taken receipts 
for the money and from so many people? Would I have left 
behind me written evidences that I had entered into a con- 
spiracy to kill and murder? 

But these men say that my bringing to Frankfort of this 
large crowd of people constituted a conspiracy to murder 
Senator Goebel and the Legislature. A conspiracy, and a 
thousand people in a conspiracy ! Do you think I would go 
to the mountains of Kentucky and take a thousand people into 
my bosom and make them conspirators with me? You never 
heard of a conspiracy of that character, where the taking of 
human life was intended. The bringing of that mountain 
crowd may have been an indiscreet thing. I want to be per- 
fectly frank with you ; but, as far as the conspiracy is con- 
cerned, you know you would not take a thousand people into 
your confidence and make them conspirators with you. Do 
you suppose that, if that meeting in the Agricultural office 
had been a meeting of conspirators, Culton would have to be 
introduced to Van Zant, — they had never seen each other 
before ; or Van Zant would have to be introduced to Hamp 
Howard, — they had never seen each other before, and that 
they would enter into a conspiracy with themselves and me 
for the purpose of taking a man's life? That is unreasonable, 
and the prosecution has to admit it. They complain loudly 
that it is a conspiracy, but when you get down to the bed-rock 
of truth, they admit it was not a conspiracy. 

There were eight members of that meeting, and out of the 
eight members but three have been indicted. If the Agricul- 
tural meeting was a meeting of conspirators, why indict but 
three of the eight? If it had been a conspiracy, Mr. Franklin, 
you would have indicted the last one of the people. You 
know it, and I know it, and the whole country knows it, and 
you have confessed, by your failure to indict them, that it 
was not a conspiracy. Do you believe I would have given out 
one thousand dollars on that occasion and have taken written 
receipts for it, leaving behind me written evidence of the 



422 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

fact that I had entered into a conspiracy then and there to 
bring about the death of my fellow man? Do you think I 
would have done that? Do you think I would have left that 
meeting and gone out in the city of Frankfort and sent a 
dozen telegrams to people out in the country — Judge Bing- 
ham, Superintendent Siler, "Hop" Donaldson, Rice and 
others, telling them to meet me at London? What for? For 
the purpose of entering into a conspiracy? If the meeting in 
the Agricultural office constituted a conspiracy, certainly the 
meeting at London constituted a conspiracy, because those 
people met on exactly the same mission and for the purpose 
of carrying out exactly the same purpose. At that time and 
place there met Judge Bingham, Superintendent Siler, J. H. 
Donaldson, Captain Rice, Early and others, and none of these 
people has been indicted by the prosecution. Many of them 
were older men than I, and knew more about men and affairs 
than I do. Then, if that meeting was a conspiracy, these men 
should have been indicted. Do you believe that if that meet- 
ing had been a conspiracy, I would have given out a lot more 
money and taken written receipts for it> leaving behind me 
further evidence of the fact that I had entered into a con- 
spiracy to murder my fellow man? Do you believe I would 
have gone to Barboursville, Ky., and had men go to Frank- 
fort carrying arms openly, calling attention to the people all 
over the world that they had entered into a conspiracy 
to bring about the death of their fellow man, and that 
they wanted to give it all the publicity possible? It is unrea- 
sonable. 

If the bringing of the mountain crowd to Frankfort was a 
part of a conspiracy, why have you not indicted Captain Steve 
Sharpe, who presided at the meeting they held on the steps 
of the Capitol of the state? Why haven't you indicted Mr. 
Berry, Mr. Razor, Judge Catron and others who were 
appointed a committee on resolutions at that meeting, and 
presented them to the grand jury for consideration? Why 
not indict some of the men of the Blue-grass who partici- 
pated in that meeting? 

If the idea had been to take human life, do you suppose 
I would have had the men carry their arms openly, come on 



CULTON'S CHARGE NONSENSICAL 423 

a special train and wear badges, thereby warning the other 
side that we were there and to get ready for us? Would we 
have notified the other side of our coming if we had intended 
to kill them? If it had been the purpose of the mountain 
men to clean up the Legislature, as Culton puts it, would it 
not have been far wiser to bring only small arms ? One pistol 
would be worth a dozen rifles in a close fight like that. 

And what good would the cleaning up of the Legislature do 
me? Would you have taken a crowd of your friends up to 
Barboursville for the purpose of cleaning up the Legislature in 
the case I have supposed, when the members of the Legislature 
had nothing to do with your oflfice, and when the mere fact that 
you had killed a member of the Legislature, or a Republican 
governor, would make the other Republicans who had charge 
of your contest decide against you? It would have but one 
possible effect on the contest I have supposed, and that, in the 
excitement of the hour, when the blood was hot, to turn you 
out of your office, whether your opponent had been elected or 
not. 

Do you suppose that I would have brought a crowd of peo- 
ple down to Frankfort for the purpose of killing Mr. Goebel, 
or the members of the Legislature, when it could have had but 
one possible effect on the office I was trying to hold, and that 
to deprive me of it, in the excitement of the hour, and to 
incite the public to retaliation against the outrage done in 
killing members of the Legislature, or the contestant for gov- 
ernor? What if that crowd had gone up into the halls of the 
Legislature and killed a dozen members of the Kentucky Leg- 
islature, as these gentlemen allege was the purpose for which 
they were brought to Frankfort ? What effect would that have 
had on the office to which I had been elected? Let us see. 

Would not a storm of indignation have swept over this 
state? Would not the people have stood aghast at such a 
procedure? Would not the heart of every honest man in all 
this land have beat with indignation at such brutal and cow- 
ardly atrocities? If the Republicans had brought about such 
a catastrophe, would not the whole state have said : " Yes, 
take their offices away from them ; they are unworthy of 
them?" Would not the people have demanded that if such a 



424 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

gang of vultures had been elevated to high official position, 
they should be taken from power before they had another 
opportunity of further disgracing our state? Would not I 
have known that would be the result of such action? 
Would I not have known that such a course would take from 
me my office? Would I have done that when I was trying to 
hold it? 

If I had been so constituted as to resort to murder in order 
to hold office, would I not have had Mr. Poyntz killed when 
Pryor and Ellis resigned from office? Had he been dead, 
the governor, under the law, was the man who had the 
power to appoint all three of the board of election com- 
missioners. Had Poyntz been killed, Governor Taylor would 
have appointed three members on the state board of election 
commissioners, and they would have decided that I was 
elected, and that I was entitled to my office. That is the law 
in this state. No well-informed man doubts it. 

If I had wanted to kill anybody, in order to hold my office, 
I would have killed somebody that would have done me 
some good. Messrs. Pryor and Ellis resigned their office 
on the twenty-second day of December, 1899, and Mr. Poyntz 
did not appoint anybody to fill their places until some time 
afterward. If Mr. Poyntz had been killed within that interval, 
the law is as plain as the noonday sun, that Taylor had 
the power to appoint three men to compose the state board 
of election commissioners. He would have appointed three 
Republicans. These three Republicans would have decided 
for us and every state officer, from lieutenant-governor down, 
would have been holding office at Frankfort to-day, and no 
power short of revolution could have prevented us from 
doing it. 

If I had been willing to commit murder in order to hold 
office, would not common sense say to do it that way? 
But here you have me charged with leading a conspiracy to 
commit murder that could have but one effect on the office to 
which I was elected, and that to take it from me. In one 
breath you say that I am a fool and in the next breath you 
say that I am the brains of the alleged conspiracy, as you have 
asserted. If I had sense enough to be the brains of one 



TRIED TO SERVE THE STATE 425 

conspiracy, I had sense enough to be the brains of another. 
And, if I had been in the killing of anybody, I would have 
been in the killing that would have helped Powers to hold 
his office, and not in the one that would have been sure 
to take it from him. Is this not common sense, gentlemen? 
Would I not have procured my man and have sent him to 
where Mr. Poyntz was and there have killed him? They 
say that I am an arch-conspirator and murderer, and a fiend 
and an assassin. Why did I not do that, gentlemen, and then 
get a pardon for the man who did it and one for myself be- 
fore Governor Taylor was ousted from office, and when he 
had the legal right to pardon? 

Why did I not commit murder that would profit me some- 
thing? Why would I commit murder that would take from 
me that for which I was contending — my office? Ah, gentle- 
men, there was no conspiracy in bringing those mountain men 
down to Frankfort. I had but one object, and only one, and 
that was to serve my state honorably ; to represent faithfully 
those who intrusted me with power and office, to the very 
best of my ability; to preserve to the legal voters of this 
state the sacred right to vote for the candidates of their 
choice and have their votes counted as cast ; to hold the office 
to which I had been fairly elected. My judgment may have 
been at fault, but my intentions were honest. If mistake it 
was, it was one of the head, and not one of the heart. 

When, at Barboursville, at the meeting in the Anderson Ho- 
tel, Mr. Black suggested that it would be impossible to keep 
those men quiet, and sober, and orderly, I agreed to put a 
man over each squad for that purpose. When they got to the 
depot at Barboursville, Mr, Trosper, Mr. Higgins and other 
witnesses told you that I went up and down the depot and 
said to the men that they must not get drunk on this trip, and 
that they must keep sober and orderly and conduct themselves 
in such a w^ay as to cast no reflection on their end of the 
state. Mr. Lockhart told you that I said to him that it would 
not be very safe at Frankfort with a pistol, and it would not 
be very safe without one ; that I advised him not to get drunk 
when he got to Frankfort, and to keep off the streets, to keep 
sober, and to keep out of trouble. Other witnesses told you 



426 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY" 

that I went through the train twice, between Barboursville and 
Frankfort, and cautioned the men that they must keep out of 
trouble. Does this look like the conduct of a conspirator, 
gentlemen? Those men were instructed to wear their badges. 
If they were going on a mission of murder, would they be 
advertising it to the whole world? 

And when they got to Frankfort, what did they do? They 
stacked their arms ; they put them away. If murder had 
been their mission, why put away their instruments of war? 
If they went down there to kill Senator Goebel, or members 
of the Senate or House of Representatives, why did they not 
retain their arms, and use them for the purpose for which they 
are alleged to have been brought? The Legislature was in 
session that day. Why did they not take their guns and go up 
stairs and say to the members of the Legislature : " We have 
come to settle this contest." Why give thirty minutes in which 
to settle it? According to these gentlemen, these mountain- 
eers would rather kill some one than not. But Culton says 
the Legislature was to be given thirty minutes to settle 
the contest. Cecil says fifteen minutes. Why did they not go 
up there and say : " Gentlemen, we will give you thirty min- 
utes to settle this contest ; " and if they did not settle it in 
thirty minutes, why did not they kill off enough Democrats 
to make a Republican majority? That is what Golden says 
was the program. The men were there ; they had their guns 
there, and there was nothing to hinder them from carrying 
out the program, as suggested by Golden, and Culton, and Cecil. 

The old, old adage, " Actions speak louder than words," is 
applicable to this particular case. Culton said that they were 
coming down there ; that they intended to give the legis- 
lators thirty minutes to settle the contest, and that if this 
was not done, it was his understanding they intended to kill 
them. George S. Page, who was a member of the meeting, 
at which I was supposed to have made such a remark, testified 
that he did not hear me say anything of the kind. T. C. 
Davison was also a member of that meeting, and he said that 
I did not say anything of the kind. George S. Page, H. H. 
Howard, H. S. Van Zant and T. C. Davison attended the 
Agricultural office meeting, and said that I did not use the 



AN ABSURD CHARGE 427 

words attributed to me by either Culton or Cecil, but that I 
told them and other members of the meeting to get good men 
to come to Frankfort for the purpose of petitioning the Legis- 
lature. 

But the best proof of the pudding is in the eating of it; 
and the best proof of what the men came down to do is what 
they did. It is confessed by everybody that tliey were strong 
enough to have carried out any plan or anything they might 
have determined upon. And since there was nothing to 
prevent them from giving the legislators thirty minutes to 
settle it, and if they did not do it, to have killed the last 
one of them ; and, since they did not kill any of them ; since 
they never tried to kill any of them, the conclusion is inevi- 
table that they either did not come down to Frankfort for 
the purpose of killing the legislators or giving them thirty 
minutes to settle the contest, or they failed to carry out 
their plans when they did come. There is no escape from 
that conclusion. 

We have heard a great deal about the killing of members 
of the House in the hall of representatives, but we have heard 
nothing about a fight in the Senate, or killing members of the 
Senate. How would a fight in the House chamber affect 
Senator Goebel or other members of the Senate? The two 
bodies are separate and distinct, and occupy different apart- 
ments, and if it had been the idea to kill Senator Goebel 
in a brawl, the idea would have been, not to have a fight 
in the House, but a fight in the Senate. If you wanted 
to kill the proprietor of the Lancaster Hotel, here in George- 
town, in a fight, would you go into the Wellington Hotel and 
there raise a fight? You would go to the hotel whose owner 
you wanted to kill. If it had been the idea to kill Senator 
Goebel in a fight, the fight would have been raised in the 
Senate ; not in the House. That is common sense, gentlemen. 
These gentlemen realized the force of that, and in their effort 
to try to avoid the effect of such reasoning, they take the more 
absurd and ridiculous position that the idea of the Republi- 
cans was to kill off enough Democrats to make a Republican 
majority; in other words, instead of killing one man, to kill 
a dozen or two. 



428 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

If a fight had occurred in the House chamber, what would 
have been the result, aside from the one I have already re- 
ferred to? Only one; and that is, that a great many of the 
Republican members would have been killed, as well as a 
great many Democratic members. And, surely, the Republi- 
cans would not enter into arrangements whereby their own 
members were to be killed, or any part of them? And all 
this talk about a fight in either House has either been lies, 
deliberately sworn to, or those who talked it are maniacs. 

It is claimed they wanted to kill the senators and repre- 
sentatives, so that when they came to vote on the question 
as to whether Goebel or Taylor should hold the seat as gov- 
ernor, there would be a majority for Taylor, and the way 
to get that majority was to kill enough Democrats to give 
the Republicans a majority. I have recently looked up 
just how the members stood politically. Counting the inde- 
pendent Democrats, who voted with the Republicans upon 
most measures, the Senate was Democratic by two votes ; 
counting the anti-Goebel Democrats with the Republicans, 
the House was Democratic by sixteen votes, so that on joint 
ballot, the Democrats had a majority of eighteen votes; 
then, nine of them would have to be killed before the Repub- 
licans would have had a majority, and it is safe to say that 
five Republicans would have been killed in the operation ; 
for it would hardly be expected that all of them would escape. 

Then, gentlemen, is it not true that if there had been any 
arrangement by which a row or fight was to take place 
in either the House or the Senate for the purpose of killing 
enough Democratic members to give the Republicans a ma- 
jority on joint ballot, for the purpose of out-voting the Demo- 
crats and seating Governor Taylor, we can not escape the con- 
clusion that the Republicans must have been warned of such a 
procedure on the part of their Republican friends, otherwise 
they would have as likely been killed in such a brawl as the 
Democratic members. 

Excitement was extremely high ; trouble was expected from 
the country at large ; and those at the storm-center of the 
wild excitement that prevailed in the state were in daily 
dread that an outburst might come, at any moment, and their 



AN IDIOTIC SUGGESTION 429 

lives be lost. It is wholly unreasonable, gentlemen, that if 
there had been a movement on foot on the part of any 
Republicans in Frankfort to slaughter a sufficient number 
of either the Democratic members of the House or Senate 
to give the Republicans a majority on joint ballot — I say 
that it would be wholly unreasonable to contend that the 
Republican members were not notified that such a catas- 
trophe was coming, and warned to be prepared to take care 
of their own lives. The prosecution says : " Yes, they were 
notified, and they were to fall flat on the floor upon the 
firing of the first shot." Then, gentlemen, if they were warned 
that such a movement was on foot, they became a party to this 
alleged conspiracy. 

Then, you have forty-two members of the House and 
eighteen members of the Senate who were parties to this 
conspiracy, if such there was, to bring about the death of Sen- 
ator Goebel. And if they were in the conspiracy, Mr. Franklin, 
why have you not indicted and convicted them? This county 
would like to know that. I fall at your feet and beg for that 
little crumb of information. 

Again, no man will believe that all the Republican senators 
and representatives would swear falsely if they were placed 
on the witness-stand in this case. And if there were any 
plans or arrangements by which the Democratic members of 
either House were to be killed, the Republican members would 
certainly know about it; and if you believe in good faith, Mr. 
Franklin ; if you have any faith, Mr. Campbell, in your assertion 
that there was such a conspiracy to murder your lawmakers 
or lawbreakers, as the case may be, then why have you not 
called these Republican members who must have known about 
such a plot, to substantiate Golden and Culton and Youtsey, 
et id omne genus, in their statements to that effect, when 
they can not be believed unless they are corroborated and when 
no one of them can corroborate the other? Then, gentlemen, 
it is not only true that Culton and Golden and Cecil and Com- 
pany are swearing to what they know to be untrue, but it is 
plain that the prosecution knows there was no such conspiracy 
to kill off enough Democrats to make a Republican majority; 
such is the talk of a lunatic, an empty-headed idiot. 



430 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

But, for the sake of argument, and that only, let us sup- 
pose the crowd did come down for the purpose of killing 
members of the Legislature. For the sake of argument, and 
for that only, let us admit for the time being, they did 
come down for that purpose; suppose they came down for the 
purpose of blotting Frankfort off the map ; suppose they meant 
to overturn civil institutions in this state and institute in their 
stead a reign of terror and bloodshed. They never came 
for any such purpose, but suppose they did, it is beyond dis- 
pute, beyond question, that they did not carry out the pur- 
pose for which they came, if they came on any such purpose. 
They came to Frankfort; they were orderly; they petitioned 
the Legislature; they went home; no hair on the head of a 
single man was harmed. If they came to the capital to do 
violence or harm they did not do either. That being true, 
there is no law to punish them for intentions which were 
never carried out. 

Let me illustrate : Suppose, Mr. Booth, that some one should 
go to the home of one of your neighbors for the purpose of 
stealing one of his horses ; suppose that after he got there he 
concluded he would not take the horse, and returned home, 
leaving the horse of your neighbor undisturbed and un- 
harmed ; would any one contend that he could be punished 
criminally for the intention he entertained, when that intention 
was not carried out? Nobody would contend that. There 
is not a lawyer on the other side of this case who will slander 
his professional reputation by asserting that the man could be 
legally punished. And if the intention of the mountain men 
was to murder, as Culton claimed their intention was, it was 
not carried out. If some man in this house had it in his heart 
to murder the stenographer here when this court adjourns ; and 
if when court does adjourn he is not harmed, there is no law 
to punish the man, whatever his intentions may have been, 
and however clearly they may have been established. So you 
can not punish a man for his intentions. And if the moun- 
tain people did come to Frankfort for the purpose of giving the 
Legislature thirty minutes to settle the contest, it is evident 
they did not carry out their intentions, and, therefore, they 
could not be punished for coming with those intentions. 



ALL NOT TO BLAME 431 

And it naturally follows that I could not be legally puni'shed 
for bringing the mountain people to Frankfort, if they did 
come on a mission of murder. 

But, gentlemen, they came with no such intentions. From 
the time they entered Frankfort on the morning of January 
twenty-fifth, until they left it, on the evening of the same 
day, their conduct bespoke a peaceful mission. It is a dif- 
ficult matter, as you gentlemen know, to control the conduct 
of everybody. Because one man disturbs church services, 
are we to conclude that it is the desire of all present 
that the services be disturbed? Because some one of the 
mountain men got drunk and said rash things, as Mr. 
Vreeland testifies that one did, are we to conclude that all the 
rest of the men indorsed such statements? It would be as 
fair to say that all members of a church were glad, in their 
hearts, that the services were broken up, as to say that all the 
mountain crowd indorsed sentiments of violence. The way 
to judge the purpose of a congregation at church; the purpose 
of a mass-meeting; the purpose of any public meeting, is to 
decide their purpose from what they do as a body, and not 
from some wild saying of an irresponsible member. Is that 
not true, gentlemen? How else can it be done? 

Suppose that the people in this court-house at this moment 
should be called upon — the citizens of Georgetown — to 
express their views as to whether a certain proposition 
should be enacted into a law by the town authorities. Suppose 
some one introduces a resolution declaring it to be the sense 
of the citizens of Georgetown here present that the proposi- 
tion should be enacted into law, and the chairman of the 
meeting should say that the resolution is now open for dis- 
cussion and some wild fanatic should arise and say: "Mr. 
Chairman, I am a citizen of Scott County and a resident of the 
town of Georgetown. I have helped to support your laws by 
my means for twenty years. Lawlessness still exists ; I am in 
favor of wiping out of existence every law that has been 
enacted by the authorities of this town. I am tired of law. 
I am not only in favor of doing that, but I want every particle 
of law that governs the conduct of the people of this state, 
whether common, municipal or statutory, immediately ren- 



432 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

dered void." He sits down. He has had his say. The 
people pay no attention to his wild vaporings, but go ahead 
and say, by an unanimous vote, that they are in favor of the 
proposed enactment becoming a law for the government of the 
town. What would you say was the intention of that meet- 
ing? Would you say that the citizens were in favor of law 
or in favor of no law? How would you judge? You would 
judge from what a majority of them did. 

And if one of you gentlemen should be indicted for partici- 
pating in this mass-meeting, for the offense of being opposed 
to law and order, Mr. Franklin and these other gentlemen 
would say, in their appeals to the jury, that you, all of you, 
were scoundrels and lawless citizens at heart ; that you did not 
mean what you said when you voted for the re'solution for the 
purpose of having certain laws enacted for the government of 
the people of the town. These gentlemen prosecuting you 
would say that you were doing it for the purpose of covering 
up your real intentions. Is not that so, gentlemen? And 
when some mountain man at Frankfort on the twenty-fifth of 
January, not a member of the meeting, happened to say 
some violent words, these gentlemen immediately say that he 
gave utterance to the real intention of the coming of the 
mountain people. They say that when those people were as- 
sembled in a peaceful manner and passed resolutions begging 
and pleading that their votes be counted as cast, asking that 
our public servants do not tarnish the fair name of our state 
with the overthrow of the most sacred of all the rights of the 
people, it was a blatant mockery of their real purpose, and 
that they did not mean it. 

The mountain people held that meeting on the twenty-fifth 
of January when the noonday sun was high in the heavens. 
There, in plain view of all the people of Frankfort, on the 
public square of the state, and on the threshold of the Capitol, 
it was witnessed by friends and foes alike. Was that the con- 
duct of men who conspired to murder? Ah, gentlemen, con- 
spiracies to kill and murder are not formed or carried out 
that way. I was never in a conspiracy, gentlemen, to do 
violence to anybody ; but from what I have seen and what I 
know of humanity, conspiracies are not framed in the open. 



NONE BUT A FOOL WOULD DO IT 433 

The crimes that fill the annals of this country are not done 
with humanity gazing on. Burglars make their way to your 
home in the dead hours of night, when you and the rest of 
humanity are supposed to be embraced in the sweet arms of 
sleep. Thieves roam over the country and never lay hands 
on that which is not theirs when mortal eyes are supposed 
to see them. Rapists never select the crowded thoroughfares 
of our cities in which to commit their fiendish crimes. Con- 
spirators who seek the life of their fellow men do not hold 
public meetings in the blaze of the noonday sun, on the Capi- 
tol square of their state — in the midst of the camp of their 
intended victims and in their very presence. 

If the bringing of that mountain crowd was any part of a 
conspiracy to murder, and if I had a hand in it, I ought to be 
sent to the asylum for the insane, and there, with raving 
maniacs as boon companions, spend the remainder of my days, 
in the charge of those whose duty it is to care for the helpless 
in head. But these gentlemen assert, both publicly and pri- 
vately, in court and out, that I am not a fool. Then, if I am 
not, credit me with more sense than to enter into a conspiracy 
to take human life with a thousand other fellow conspirators 
and in the midst of a crowded city, with hundreds of those 
unfriendly to my cause looking on, and in the very heart of the 
camp of my supposed victims. 

The assertion on the part of the Commonwealth that the 
bringing of the mountain crowd to Frankfort constituted a part 
of the conspiracy to kill Senator Goebel, is an evidence of the 
weakness of its own position. The sober-minded part of the 
country repudiates such a charge. The sense of the land says 
that could not be any part of a conspiracy, and for the sake 
of your own reputations, gentlemen, you had better abandon it. 

There is not a witness, except Cecil, in the whole of the 
record who testifies that I ever had the remotest connection 
with any mountain man from the twenty-fifth to the thirtieth of 
January ; Cecil, the indicted murderer, robber and rapist ! Cecil, 
who had his alleged talk alone with me ! Cecil, who is swearing 
for and getting immunity ! the saintly Cecil, who refused, he 
says, offers of money for murder from Taylor, but who stands 
indicted for the robbery of Mr. Colgan for two thousand one 



434 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

hundred dollars ! There is no proof that I procured any of 
them or advised any of them, or tried to get any of 
them, to kill William Goebel except the testimony of the pious 
and godly Cecil. Wharton Golden himself said that I did 
not have any talk with him after the large body went home. 
Culton told you that he had no talk with me in reference to 
the men remaining over at Frankfort or the work to be done 
by them ; that he never in his life talked to me concerning the 
killing of Goebel. 

And the hopes of the prosecution upon which they can base 
a conviction is that the men came upon an unlawful mission, 
and while thus engaged in that unlawful mission Senator 
Goebel was killed, which charge, you know, gentlemen, is un- 
founded, from the fact that nearly all the men had gone 
home, and that the others who remained had as much right to 
remain in the city of Frankfort as you or I. And the court 
told you further, gentlemen, in the admission of testimony 
to show threats on the part of the Democrats that they in- 
tended to take forcible possession of the offices as soon a's the 
Legislature and the contest board passed upon the same, 
that those men had a right to remain on those grounds for the 
purpose of resisting any such attempt. If some one should 
try to take forcible possession of your home and throw you 
bodily out of it, you know that you would have the right to 
resist any such illegal attempt, and you know further that 
you would have the right to call in your neighbors to help you 
resist it. Those men had the right, gentlemen, to remain on 
those grounds for that purpose, and that is why they did re- 
main. The pro'secution will not deny that they had the right 
to remain there for the purpose of preventing or helping to 
prevent the Democrats or anybody else from taking forcible 
possession of those offices. And nobody asserts, with any evi- 
dence to support it, that any one of those mountain men who 
remained over at Frankfort on the twenty-fifth of January 
killed or had anything to do with the killing of Senator Wil- 
liam Goebel. 

Mr. Franklin did not believe, and does not now believe, 
that any one of those men who remained over at Frankfort 
did the shooting that resulted in the death of William Goebel ; 



MOUNTAINEERS DID NOT SHOOT 435 

for when he came to make the indictment against the men 
whom, he asserts, killed Senator Goebel, he did not include 
within it a single mountain man who came with the large 
crowd of mountain men, nor a single mountain man who 
remained over after the great majority had returned to their 
homes. And if no man who came with the mountain crowd 
killed Senator Goebel, even if I brought them for a million 
unlawful purposes, how could I be held responsible for the 
death of Senator Goebel, if none of them had anything to 
do with the firing of the shot, nor was present when it was 
fired? 

Bear in mind, gentlemen, that no man who came with 
that crowd has ever been indicted for the firing of the shot 
that killed Senator Goebel. There have been only five men 
indicted for that — Holland Whittaker, who lives in Butler 
County, and who did not come down with the mountain 
crowd; Dick Combs, who lives, I think, in Lee County, and 
who had nothing to do with the mountain crowd; Jim How- 
ard, who was not with the mountain crowd and had nothing 
to do with it; Berry Howard, who was not among the moun- 
tain crowd, did not come with it and had nothing to do with 
it; and Henry E. Youtsey, who lives in Campbell County, and 
who was at Frankfort and had nothing to do with that moun- 
tain crowd. He says he did not. And when Mr. Franklin 
came to make the indictments against the men who, he says, 
shot and killed Senator Goebel, he indicted no one of that 
mountain crowd. Mr. Franklin has admitted by his conduct 
that William Goebel was not shot by any man of that mountain 
crowd, because he did not indict any of the mountain men for 
doing it. He says that Goebel was killed by Jim Howard and 
Henry E. Youtsey. Howard did not get to Frankfort on the 
thirtieth day of January until within less than an hour before 
Goebel was shot, and five days after the mountain men had 
come to Frankfort, and eight hundred out of the one thou- 
sand had returned to their homes. Youtsey did not come 
with the mountain crowd, and had nothing to do with it, 
if his own testimony can be believed. Then, if no member 
of that mountain crowd fired the shot that killed Senator Goe- 
bel, and if other men did fire the shot, as the Commonwealth 



436 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

contends by their action in indicting others, then why should I 
be held responsible for bringing them to Frankfort? 

But suppose, for the sake of argument, that some of the 
members of that mountain crowd had killed Mr. Goebel ; 
suppose that Jim Howard, and Berry Howard, and Henry 
E. Youtsey, and Dick Combs, and Holland Whittaker had 
never been indicted ; suppose that some of the mountain men 
who came down with that large crowd had been indicted as 
the ones who killed Senator Goebel, would it follow, as a 
proposition of law and as a matter of justice, that I ought to be 
convicted? Should I be convicted, gentlemen, on the plea that 
had the mountain men not come to Frankfort, Goebel might 
not have been killed? Should I be held responsible for every 
act of every mountain man because I was the cause of his 
being in Frankfort? Oh, no, gentlemen; that is not the law, 
and it has never been the law. Had I not been indicted for 
the murder of Senator Goebel, this trial would not now be 
in progress in this city. Had I never been born, I could not 
have been indicted. Am I to be held responsible because the 
Creator of the universe gave me an existence here on earth ? 

Were my trial not in progress here, it would not have be- 
come necessary for the Commonwealth and the defense to 
summon a lot of men from the mountains as witnesses 
here in this case. If some of these witnesses, who have been 
Summoned here as witnesses for the defense, should, during 
their stay in Georgetown, rob a bank or plunder a store, or 
kill a man, would it be fair to hold me responsible for either 
robbery or murder, because had it not been for me the crime 
would not have happened, when, as a matter of fact, I had 
nothing to do with the crime? I was the cause of their being 
in Georgetown ; I summoned them as witnesses, and after 
they got here, without my knowing it, they entered into a 
conspiracy to rob a bank, or kill a man ; and, if you please, 
they do kill one of your Georgetown citizens, — am I to 
be held responsible for that? And if I were the cause of 
those mountain men getting to Frankfort, and if, after they 
got there, they entered into a conspiracy to kill Senator Goe- 
bel, should I be held responsible for that? It would be just 
as fair to hold me responsible for the supposed murder in 



DID NOT ADVISE MURDER 437 

Georgetown as it would to hold me responsible for the mur- 
der of Senator Goebel, under such circumstances as that. 

The instructions in this case tell you that if I counseled, 
or advised, or procured the murder of Senator Goebel, 
then I should be convicted. And, if I counseled, advised and 
procured the supposed murder here in Georgetown, I would 
be guilty. But I could not be guilty in either case unless 
I counseled, advised or procured the murder. If, after those 
mountain men got to Frankfort, they grew impatient and came 
to the conclusion that they would end the contest by killing 
Senator Goebel, without my knowledge and without my 
procurement, and they did so kill him^ is there a sane man 
upon top of the earth who would contend that I ought to be 
held responsible for it? Is there a lawyer on either side of this 
case who would slander his professional reputation by assert- 
ing that I would? Will Mr. Franklin contend before you, in 
his argument, that if, after those mountain men came to 
Frankfort, some of them got together and decided that they 
would kill Senator Goebel, without my knowledge, yea, even 
^without my procurement, and did so kill him, I ought to 
be held responsible for that, becau'se, had it not been for me, 
they would not have been in Frankfort? No, gentlemen, he 
will make no such contention before you. We are all a 
weak, short-sighted set of human beings here in this world ; 
finite creatures with finite minds ; born into this world with 
imperfections and short-comings. Oh! gentlemen, if we 
could but lift the golden curtain that shields from our view 
the mysterious future ; if we could but see beyond the heights 
and into to-morrow ; if we could but know of approaching 
dangers that are to seal the doom of some part of 
humanity; if we could but see the pitfalls before our feet, 
a great part of the misfortunes and calamities and tragedies 
of life could be avoided. But no mortal man has been 
vouchsafed such gifts. There is but One who is omniscient ; 
there is but One whose brain knows all ; but One whose vision 
is clear enough to pierce the darkness of the future and tell 
what is to be to-morrow. If I could have known that 
the coming of those mountain men would result in the death 
of Senator Goebel, if it did so result, they never would have 



43S MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

been brought. If those ignorant people living at the base of 
Mount Pelee, or those splendid Americans living at Johnstown, 
had known what was about to happen to them, they would 
not have lost their lives. And for you, gentlemen, to say 
that I ought to have known that the bringing of the mountain 
men to Frankfort would result in the murder of Senator 
Goebel, is to require of me more wisdom and foresight than 
it has ever pleased an All-wise Creator to bestow on mortal 
man. You will not require it of me. But if the prosecution 
can be relied upon to name the men who fired the fatal shot, 
none of the mountain men had aught to do with it. No one 
of them fired the shot ; no one of them was present, aiding 
or abetting those who did fire it. A different set of men 
altogether ha's been indicted for that. 

Let us now, gentlemen, turn our attention for a few min- 
utes to the pardon issued to me by Governor Taylor. It is 
claimed by the prosecution that I was in a conspiracy with 
a number of others to bring about the death of Mr. Goebel, 
and that it was a part of the plan for Governor Taylor to 
pardon all those implicated. And in support of this conten- 
tion they continue to say that Taylor did pardon myself and 
others. Let us look at this a« moment, gentlemen. Let us 
apply the test of reason to what they allege to be true and 
see if the ground they take is tenable. In the first place, 
gentlemen, no one of the pardons was issued earlier than 
the afternoon of the tenth day of March, 1900. They were not 
issued, gentlemen, until after Culton had been arrested and 
lodged in jail; they were not issued until after warrants of 
arrest were issued for myself and my brother, and Finley 
and old man Davis. 

The testimony in this case Is that on the night of the 
eighth day of March, 1900, Culton was arrested and an at- 
tempt made to arrest old man Davis and myself at his 
home on Lewis Street, in Frankfort, and that we made our 
escape to the State House Square. The testimony is that 
during all the day following, old man Davis and myself 
stayed in the land office, and on the evening of that day, 
when we had to make our escape until the mad passion 
of the hour was over, pardons were issued to us as a mat- 



WHY I ACCEPTED A PARDON 439 

ter of temporary protection. It is in evidence, gentlemen, that 
I meant only to go to the mountains of Kentucky and there 
remain until the excitement died away, and that then I meant 
to stand my trial. You remember that Captain Davis was 
issued a pardon at the same time that I received mine. Who 
is there, gentlemen, that now thinks that old man Davis had 
anything to do with the murder of Senator Goebel? 

You remember that on the night of the ninth of March, 
after officers had tried to arrest him and me, I had a talk 
with Judge Yost as to what I should do. Judge Yost was 
my lawyer in my civil suit. Judge Yost thought it advisable 
that Captain Davis and myself should go over to the State 
House grounds. He did not believe that we could possibly 
be protected by the civil authorities; he thought the state of 
excitement was such that we could not possibly be protected 
from mob violence. You remember that is the testimony I 
gave, gentlemen, and if I had not been telling the truth about 
it Judge Yost would have been called as a witness to contra- 
dict me. Judge Yost was a witness in the Ripley trial. He 
has been before your grand juries, Mr. Franklin; you know 
to what he will testify; you know he did advise me that the 
civil authorities could not protect me. You remember that 
he stated that I could not possibly get a fair trial and that 
if I could get to the mountains of this state and remain 
there until I could get a fair trial, and until the passion of 
the people subsided, he believed it would be the proper thing 
to do. You remember, gentlemen, Victor Anderson, one of 
the witnesses for the prosecution, testified that I wanted him 
to get Colonel Breckinridge for me over the telephone on 
the morning of the tenth of March; I testified to the same 
thing, gentlemen. You remember I told you that I wished 
to consult Colonel Breckinridge as to what I should do, but 
that I was unable to get him. Remember, I said to you that 
I had reasons why I wanted to be away from Frankfort at 
that time. In the first place, I did not feel that the civil 
authorities there could protect me from mob violence, what- 
ever might be their efforts to prevent lawlessness. Excite- 
ment ran high. Passions were inflamed. I did not be- 
lieve it was safe for me, or that I would be protected, 



440 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

if I surrendered at that time. That Is one reason why I 
wanted to get away. Another one was that I had advised 
with Judge Yost, a lawyer, about the matter and he thought 
it best for me that I be away until after the passions of the 
people subsided. Another reason is, that one hundred thou- 
sand dollars had been appropriated to prosecute the men 
charged with connection in this affair. I was a poor 
boy. I did not have money of my own to fight properly a 
case of that sort. That is a great deal of money for the 
prosecution of anybody in a matter of that kind. I knew that 
it would be almost impossible to eliminate politics from the 
trial of this case, and especially in Franklin County, the storm- 
center of excitement in the state. I did not know at that 
time, of course, that I could get a change of venue to 
this county. I did not believe that if I were tried in Franklin 
County, where excitement ran so high, my innocence would 
be a shield to me in the courts. Taylor would not place a 
squad of soldiers around the jail to protect me. 

Gentlemen, I did not believe I could be protected by the 
civil authorities in Frankfort. I did not believe I could get 
a fair trial if I remained. I knew that my attempt to escape 
to the mountains was of doubtful expediency ; I knew the 
dangers of arrest ; I knew how attempted escape would be 
construed ; I knew how a pardon to me in this matter would 
be interpreted. I was not unmindful of the situation of 
affairs, and, gentlemen, I want you to put yourselves in my 
place ; that is the best way to determine what you would 
have done. 

Suppose you had been elected to a state office, as I was 
elected ; suppose that the Republican contestant for governor 
had been shot down as Senator Goebel was shot down ; sup- 
pose that you were charged with the assassination of the 
Republican contestant for governor ; and suppose that the Re- 
publican press of the state was loud in proclaiming you 
guilty and was daily and hourly fanning the passions of the 
people to a blaze. Suppose that the Republican Legislature 
had appropriated one hundred thousand dollars to prose- 
cute you ; suppose that you were to be carried into 
the Eleventh district to be tried for the alleged conspiracy; 



DAVIS CASE RECALLED 441 

suppose you knew that in that district you would be 
tried by a Republican circuit court; that a Republican Com- 
monwealth's attorney would prosecute you; that the jurymen 
who tried you would be summoned by a Republican sheriff, 
and when they were summoned they would all be Repub- 
licans ; suppose you knew that you were to be tried in that 
Republican stronghold, while the people were drunk with 
passion and their blood was hot with rage ; and suppose that 
the prosecution against you had not only at their backs the 
strong and powerful arm of the Commonwealth, with all its 
resources, but it had, in addition to that, one hundred thou- 
sand dollars of the people's money at its command 
to purchase testimony against you ; and suppose your 
lawyers, whom you had employed in the civil suit, and upon 
whom you relied for counsel and advice, told you that you 
had better get away for the time being; that the people of 
the state were swept off their feet ; and that, in time of ex- 
citement, people apparently go mad, their reason is dethroned ; 
and suppose that your lawyer should say that you had 
better secure a pardon and get away to save your life 
until the people came to themselves ; suppose you knew 
that if you did get away, whether you had one pardon 
or a thousand, and whether you tried to escape one time or 
a million, you knew within your heart of hearts that you 
were not guilty of the crime with which you had been 
charged, and that in the end your good name would be vin- 
dicated ; suppose all this, gentlemen ; I will let each of you, 
in your own hearts, answer me — what would you have 
done? 

Why, it is not the first time, gentlemen, in the history of 
this country that innocent men have tried to escape the wrath 
of indignant people. We all know that Jefferson Davis, the 
president of the Southern Confederacy, after the Civil War 
was over, and after he was threatened with arrest for trea- 
son against the United States, tried to escape in a woman's 
dress, and was captured in a cornfield. At any rate, that 
is the generally accepted version of it. Davis knew that he 
was not guilty of treason ; he knew that he had fought for 
the South and its cause, a cause he believed to be right and 



442 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

to be his duty. He fought for home and for his people ; 
his cause failed and he was charged with treason and tried 
to escape, gentlemen, not because he was guilty, but to save 
his life from the mad storm of passion that raged through 
the whole North. And you remember, gentlemen, that he 
also accepted a pardon for treason against this government. 
He did not accept a pardon, gentlemen, because he was guilty ; 
he did not attempt to escape because he was guilty. 

So, gentlemen, this is not the first time in the history of 
this country that innocent men have tried to escape from 
unreasoning hate and have accepted pardons for that of which 
they were not guilty. What would you, gentlemen, have done 
had you been situated as I was situated? Would you not 
also have accepted a pardon? Captain John Davis tried to 
escape ; he was arrested with me ; he also was disguised as 
a soldier ; he, too, had a pardon in his pocket ; and who is it 
that now claims that old man Davis was guilty of having 
any connection with the murder of Senator Goebel? The 
prosecution knows that he is not guilty. He has been re- 
leased on bond, sent home and told that he could remain 
with his wife and children. You know that he is not guilty, 
and yet he tried to escape. The very men who the prose- 
cution now contends fired the shot that resulted in the 
death of Senator Goebel have no pardons. Isn't it in evi- 
dence that Jim Howard has no pardon? Isn't it in proof 
that Youtsey has none? These are the men behind the gun, 
according to the prosecution, and yet neither of them has a 
pardon, while Captain John Davis and Holland Whittaker, 
whom the world knows to be innocent of the crime charged 
against them, both have pardons. Then, what becomes of the 
claim of the prosecution that pardons were issued to those 
implicated in the murder of Senator Goebel? 

And if the pardon had been issued to me, as these gentle- 
men assert, I want to ask you if you don't believe that I 
would have used a little common sense in the issuing of that 
pardon, if I had been implicated in the murder of Senator 
Goebel. I want to ask you, gentlemen, if you don't believe 
that I would have used a little common sense in regard to 
that matter? This pardon was issued on the tenth day of 



LEGALITY OF THE PARDON 443 

March, 1900. Senator Goebel was shot on the thirtieth of 
January, and did not die until the third day of February ; and 
the contest committee did not try to declare Goebel gov- 
ernor until the second and third days of February. It is 
not asserted by anybody that he was legally declared governor 
until the nineteenth of February. If I had been in a con- 
spiracy to kill Senator Goebel, don't you know that I 
would have had that pardon issued at a time when the act 
of Governor Taylor would have been legal? There is no 
question about the legality of his act before the contest com- 
mittee decided against him. Why did I not have the pardon 
issued after Senator Goebel was shot, and before the decision 
of the contest committee? There could not have been any 
doubt as to its legality at that time. The gentlemen must 
either think that I am a fool, or, at any rate, they attribute 
to me most idiotic things. After the contest committee had 
decided that Goebel was rightfully governor of his state, and 
after he died and Governor Beckham stepped into his shoes 
and began to act as governor of this state, in a room in the 
Capital Hotel at Frankfort, and the contest was carried to 
the supreme court of the United States, don't you know 
that if I had been guilty and the pardon had not been issued 
before the contest committee decided for Governor Goebel, 
we would have had Governor Beckham enjoined from act- 
ing as governor until the supreme court of the United 
States passed upon the legality of his title; and had the 
pardon been issued before it did pass upon it, the whole of the 
legal fraternity knows that under that state of the case the 
pardon would have been valid. 

Don't you know that if I had been guilty, a's these gentle- 
men contend, and had hoped to get a legal pardon, don't you 
know that I would have secured a pardon during this 
time and would not have waited until the contest committee 
and the courts decided against Governor Taylor? The par- 
don was issued, gentlemen, under the state of the case that 
I have attempted to describe. It was issued, not because I 
was guilty, but issued like the one to Captain John Davis 
and to Jefferson Davis, president of the Confederacy, and 
others. 



444 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

But this contention on the part of the Commonwealth in re- 
gard to the pardon and to my attempted escape, is like other 
assertions in other things. Whatever I do and wherever I go, 
the prosecution construes it into direct and conclusive evidence 
of guilt. When I went to Louisville and locked my office 
door, on former trials they said it was almost positive proof 
of my guilt. If I had failed to lock it, it would have 
been more positive. When I told Burton in my office that I 
would withdraw from the meeting and have nothing further 
to do with it, if violence was talked of, or contemplated, the 
prosecution says that I did not mean it ; and when I called 
Todd to talk with Youtsey and persuade him from any un- 
becoming conduct, they say that I didn't mean it ; and when 
I told the men who came down with the large crowd of 
people in front of the depot in Barboursville, that they must 
keep sober and conduct themselves in such a way as to cast 
no discredit on our end of the state, the prosecution says 
the reason of that was, I wanted them to keep sober in 
order that they might murder their fellow man more ef- 
fectively. Mr. Hendrick told you that I perjured myself 
on the witness-stand because I testified with calmness and 
deliberation. What would he have said if I had testified 
otherwise? He said that I was guilty because I left my office 
for Louisville the Tuesday morning before the tragedy, and 
that I am doubly guilty because I returned to my office after 
the shooting. Whatever I do, gentlemen, it is twisted into 
damning evidence against me, and when I accept a pardon 
and try to escape to the mountains of Kentucky, they say 
that it is positive proof of my guilt, when you or any one 
else, who values his life, would have conducted himself as I 
did, under the circumstances that existed. 

And, gentlemen, there is proof in this case that rebuts all 
presumption of guilt that might arise in the minds of the 
most skeptical, either from my accepting a pardon or from 
my attempting to escape, and that is, gentlemen, that at all 
times and under all circumstances I have maintained my 
ijinocence, not by my words alone, but by my actions as well. 
Murder will out, gentlemen; and had I been guilty of the mur- 
der of Goebel, I certainly would never have appealed my case 



PUT YOURSELF IN MY PLACE 445 

after the first jury had rendered a verdict of guilty and 
sentenced me to the penitentiary for Hfe, We all know that 
the secret of murder can not be kept. 

Daniel Webster, in one of the finest criminal speeches of 
his whole life, said, concerning the fact that murder will out : 
" Such a secret is safe nowhere in the whole creation of God. 
There is neither nook nor corner where the guilty can be- 
stow it and say it is safe. The human heart was not made 
for the residence of such an inhabitant." 

And it is in accordance with the experience of mankind 
that murder will out. I have maintained all the time, and 
now maintain, that the murderer of Senator Goebel will be 
known. Could I have afforded it, had I been connected with 
it in the slightest, to appeal my case after having been 
given a life sentence the first time? Could I have afforded 
to appeal my case after I had been given a life sen- 
tence the second time? Suppose that one of you, gentlemen, 
had been guilty of the awful crime of assassinating the leader 
of the Republican party, and suppose that you were being 
prosecuted in a Republican county, before a Republican cir- 
cuit judge, with a Republican sheriff to summon the jury, 
with a Republican prosecuting attorney to prosecute you, 
with the resources of the great Commonwealth of Kentucky 
at his disposal, and with one hundred thousand dollars laid 
at his feet to unearth the murderer, with detectives prying 
into every nook and corner of this Commonwealth and into 
the secrets of every home within its confines, and people 
daily making confessions for immunity — I ask, if you had 
Deen guilty of the awful crime of assassination under such 
circumstances as these, and had been given a life sentence, 
I ask you if you would not have accepted imprisonment with 
open arms and risked your friends to come, at some time, 
to your relief? 

If you were guilty, gentlemen, you would not know on what 
day that guilt would shine forth like a blazing sun ; you 
would not know at what hour your connection with the mur- 
der would become known to the world, with one great politi- 
cal party, to say the least of it, trying to make known your 
guilt; with the resources of the state and one hundred thou- 



446 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

sand dollars and droves of detectives working to that end. 
You would not know on what trial your life would pay the 
forfeit of your connection with that murder. I ask you, gen- 
tlemen, as sensible men, would any of you have appealed your 
case the first time under the circumstances that I have de- 
scribed? Would you have appealed it a second time? No, 
gentlemen, you would not. No one of you would, had you 
been guilty. Neither would I, gentlemen. I would have 
been glad to save my life and look forward to some time 
when my friends could come to my relief and secure my 
liberation. 

Put yourselves in my place. Suppose, Mr. Booth, you were 
the defendant in this case instead of me. Suppose that you 
had your case in the court of appeals the second time, 
November thirtieth, 1902. Suppose on that day Henry Yout- 
sey had given a statement to the country that he was willing 
to go on the witness-stand and tell all he knew. Suppose 
that you were alleged to be implicated with him in the murder 
of Senator Goebel. Suppose the prosecution had always 
maintained that the fatal shot was fired from your office and 
that you were instrumental in having it fired from there. 
Suppose you had been convicted on two former occasions 
by two juries, on the theory that Youtsey and others had 
secured the key from you or your brother, as a means of entry 
to the office. Suppose the minority of the court of appeals 
had accepted that view of it, and handed down dissenting 
opinions in your case. Suppose that most of the testimony 
against you was the testimony of star-witnesses, swearing 
for immunity. Suppose you knew that the prosecution had 
always been able to prove by such men any statement it de- 
sired. 

Suppose that the members of the court of appeals, that 
had been politically your friends, had changed and had be- 
come politically your foes. Now, I want to ask you this 
question : If you were implicated with Youtsey in the mur- 
der of Senator Goebel, and he was declaring that he intended 
to take the witness-stand and tell all about it, wouldn't you 
have ceased to fight your case at that moment? Wouldn't 
you have had your lawyer go before the court of appeals 



" I AM NOT GUILTY " 447 

and dismiss your case and have gone to the penitentiary, and 
possibly have saved your life in a future trial? 

Wouldn't I have done that? Wouldn't any one with a 
spoonful of brains in his cranium have pursued that course? 
Or wouldn't I have had my lawyers, by dilatory tactics, 
push my case over into the January term of the court of 
appeals at the beginning of 1903, when it became Demo- 
cratic, and let those Democratic judges affirm the decision 
in my case, and go to the penitentiary? No public censure 
would have come to me, because, ostensibly, I would have 
fought my case to the bitter end. I did not do that; I am 
not guilty. 

I am not guilty ; my conduct proves that. And if your 
verdict in this case should be, " We agree and find the de- 
fendant guilty," if, by your verdict, you should blight and 
ruin the life of one of your fellow citizens, let me say to you 
now, gentlemen, that you will regret it to the longest day you 
live. I am innocent, gentlemen ; some day the world will 
know it. But when your verdict is rendered and you are 
dismissed and discharged from this case, if it should become 
known to-morrow that your verdict was no less than murder, 
your power to undo the wrong and palliate the crime you 
would commit would be beyond your reach. You can neither 
correct nor modify it. All the sleepless nights you would 
spend over it could not alter it ; all your bitter tears of 
regret could not change it. Your sobbing, aching hearts and 
stinging consciences would go with you to your grave, and 
still you would have done that which your suffering could 
not change, your agonies could not alter. 

But, gentlemen, you will not render such a verdict. The 
facts proved in this case do not warrant a conviction. 
The law does not authorize it, and you are going to give me 
my liberty. The scenes of this trial are rapidly coming to a 
close. You and I will part, possibly never to meet on earth 
again. I never cast my eyes on you until the trial began ; 
I may never see you more. At the furthest, gentlemen, we 
shall all soon be laid in the icy arms of death. We owe it to 
ourselves, to our families and to our country and to our God, 
to be honest men while we live. Whatever fate befalls us. 



448 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

let us do our part of the duties of life and meet all its 
responsibilities like men. Let not our pathway, while we 
live, be filled with cruelties to the helpless, wrongs to the 
unfortunate and injustise to the innocent. 

We are a band of brothers, sent here to earth to remain 
but a little while, to fitly prepare ourselves for complete 
enjoyment in the world to come. I know of no better way 
to prepare for the happy realms above than by doing good 
to others here below. You have it in your power to lead an 
innocent man to the gallows, to prison, or to liberty. And, 
remember, that the good you do to others, your uprightness 
of life, your stand for humanity and truth, will follow you 
to commend you. Whether in the future you roam over dis- 
tant countries or sail over unknown seas, or whether you 
spend the remainder of your days on earth here amid the best 
civilization, the most hospitable people upon which the sun 
of heaven has ever shone ; wherever you may be and in what- 
ever circumstances placed, if you do this day's business aS 
justice and innocence and truth demand that it should be 
done, you will always look back upon it as the most glorious 
day's work of your whole life. 

When the burden and cares of many years and the frost 
of many winters and the decrepitude natural to old age are 
bringing you nearer to the dark waters of death ; when you 
have retired from the battles and trifles of a busy life ; when 
you are caring less about the politics and policies of this 
world, and more about your safe arrival upon the shores of 
the next ; when the mysteries surrounding this awful murder 
shall have cleared away and the guilty be known, and the 
innocent are relieved of suspicion ; when it is known to this 
world, and it will be known, that an innocent young man 
was torn from a position of honor to which his fellow coun- 
trymen had elevated him, and driven from place to place like 
a common criminal in shackles and chains and forced to 
pine away his young life in a prison cell with worthless ne- 
groes, crawling lice and creeping vermin ; then, gentlemen, 
your hearts will bound with the joy of youth, and your good 
names will be heralded over the earth as being just men; 
men whose oaths and whose sense of justice and devotion to 



TOO MANY STAR-WITNESSES 449 

duty lifted them above the mad passions and prejudices of 
the hour, impelled them to render a verdict in accordance with 
the law, the evidence and justice. It will be a verdict, 
gentlemen, of which your children and grandchildren will be 
proud ; one that our country will point to with pride. It 
will bless you and yours as long as life lasts, and be a pass- 
port into the realms of bliss beyond. 

And I know that you are going to give me my liberty, 
gentlemen. I feel it in the very air. I see it in the face's of 
this vast crowd of listeners whose very hearts are bleeding 
because of the agonies I have suffered and the wrongs I have 
endured. Witness how their tears are flowing because they 
live in a country where a crime worse and blacker than 
the awful crime of assassination has been inflicted upon one 
of their fellow men, under the forms of law and in the name 
of justice. I feel that you, gentlemen, will say by your ver- 
dict, that you deplore the wrongs of the past ; and that you 
will put it beyond the reach of mortal man to repeat them 
in this case. I believe you will say that while Kentuckians 
are the quickest to do wrong they are the soonest to repent. 

Gentlemen, there are too many men swearing for immunity 
in this case; too many swearing for money; too many de- 
tectives ; too many star-witnesses. I had hoped to discuss at 
some length the star-witness in this case, but I have already 
taxed your patience too long. I wanted to tell you, when 
Colonel Campbell, with whip in hand, took a front seat in 
the band-wagon of safety and began to conduct the course 
of these proceedings, and ordered that all who would ride 
with him should have everlasting life, so far as he was con- 
cerned — a safe journey through the inviting fields of freedom, 
and a continued feast on that one-hundred-thousand-dollar 
reward fund — and that all who failed to take advantage of 
this golden opportunity should meet with death and destruc- 
tion, how Golden took early advantage of this blessed oppor- 
tunity, climbed over the front wheels of the band-wagon of 
immunity, and took a soft seat by the side of his savior, 
Colonel Tom C. Campbell. 

I wanted to tell you how Culton was led, on the arm of 
his brother-in-law, Ed Hogg, into the room of Colonel Camp- 



450 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

bell, at the Capital Hotel, at Frankfort, and there told such 
a story as restored to him his liberty, his wife and loved 
ones. I wanted to tell you how Cecil found his way from 
California into the home of the Commonwealth's attorney, 
and from there to the grand jury-room, and from there to 
liberty, and, as arranged, came here to Georgetown and 
tried to swear my life away. It was my desire to tell you 
how Youtsey had begun making confessions within six hours 
after he was lodged in jail, and how he said at that time to 
Colonel Campbell : '* / never discussed the killing of Goehel 
with Caleb Powers" And how he afterwards changed that 
story when he had been kept on bread and water for eight 
consecutive days in a prison cell in the penitentiary at Frank- 
fort. I wanted to tell you something of his pretended " fits,'* 
on his own trial, and how he tried to become a star-witness 
against me during my first trial; how he accepted a life sen- 
tence in the penitentiary for alleged complicity in Goebel's 
murder, and how, at all times, he had maintained his inno- 
cence to his own dear wife. I wanted to tell you something 
of how Golden and Culton and Cecil and Youtsey, according 
to their own statements, wanted to kill and murder, before 
Goebel's death, and how, now, they have pious longing in 
their saintly (?) souls to spread the truth broadcast over the 
land. I wanted to tell you with what " coming " appetites 
they have testified; how little they knew when they began 
testifying and how much they all know now ; how they have 
given to the world new and revised editions of " all they 
know " concerning the killing of Mr. Goebel. 

It frequently occurs that books of various character's are 
often revised, giving to the world the latest and best thoughts 
of authors on the subjects treated. But it is the first time 
that I have ever known of the sworn testimony of a witness 
in court being issued in so many new and revised editions. 
It has always been my idea that a witness was sworn to 
tell the truth, and the whole truth, on his first examination, 
and that he is supposed to do it. It has been my experience, 
gentlemen, that instead of one's memory increasing with 
age, it often becomes faulty and treacherous. It is the 
experience of humanity, gentlemen, that the further in point 



STRANGE FEATURES 45 1 

of time events are removed from us, the more dimly we see 
them. Things that were clear and vivid when they occurred, 
become faint and shadowy by the lapse of time. But these 
star-witnesses furnish us a remarkable and peculiar exception 
to the rule that applies to all honest humanity. The further 
they are removed from the fatal and unfortunate tragedy of 
January thirtieth, 1900, the more vivid is their memory, the 
more useful their knowledge. 

I would like to show you how Golden's alleged conversa- 
tions always occurred with me when I was alone, except in 
two instances where he is overwhelmingly contradicted by 
others ; how Culton's alleged conversations always occurred 
with me when I was alone, except in one instance, and in 
that instance we find him contradicted by Messrs. Page, How- 
ard, Van Zant, Davidson and others ; how Cecil always had 
his alleged conversations with me when I was alone, except 
where he is contradicted by Van Zant, Davidson, Page and 
others ; how Youtsey always had his alleged damaging con- 
versations when I was entirely alone ; how Broughton had 
his alleged conversation with me when I was alone ; how 
Noakes said he always talked to me alone. Is this not a 
remarkably strange state of the case, that these star-witnesses 
always talked to me when I was alone, and putting it out of 
my power to contradict their alleged conversations by others 
than myself? 

And is it not stranger still, that Golden and Culton and 
Noakes and Anderson and Youtsey and Cecil and Broughton 
were the only ones to whom I confided my intention to mur- 
der? Is it not strange that, out of the number of prominent 
and reputable men with whom I associated at Frankfort, 
not a single one has ever been produced to prove my mur- 
derous plans? Is it not most remarkable that I did not con- 
verse with the leaders of the party and representative citizens 
about the way the contest should be settled — about the surest 
way for me to hold the office for which I was contending? 
Has it never occurred to you, as it has to all other sensible 
people of the country, that if I talked to Golden and Culton 
and Noakes and Anderson and others of like liver exclusively 
about the best way to settle the contest, I must have 



452 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

been a fool of the first water? Does it not strike you, gentle- 
men, as being most peculiar that the only people in the whole 
state who had my entire confidence during these stirring 
times, were Noakes and Anderson, who are now confessed 
perjurers, and Golden, Culton, Cecil and Youtsey, who are 
now under indictment in this case, and swearing for im- 
munity ? 

Is it not strange that the now pious Broughton recom- 
mended, as he says, his own brother as a suitable man to 
kill Senator Goebel before the tragedy, and at this trial had 
to be run down by detectives Harding and Griffin, before he 
could be got to the witness-stand to testify for the Com- 
monwealth? There are reasons for all these things. 

There have been too many detectives in this case ; too many 
lawyers playing the part of detectives. There has been too 
much of an effort to convict some one more or less in 
politics, and too little attention paid to the prosecution of the 
real murderer. You know this policy was expressed by Col- 
onel Campbell in his first speech in my case, when he said : 
" Small gratification would it be to those looking for revenge, 
if such there were, to have a ' wretch kern ' from the High- 
lands convicted and hung. Such a man, if necessary, should 
be turned loose to the end that the conspirators who procured 
the cowardly deed done might be convicted." You see, gen- 
tlemen, they have publicly expressed that they cared nothing 
for the " little fishes ; " that it was their desire to convict 
more prominent men. 

Look at this spirit of persecution, together with the fact 
that detectives have played a most conspicuous part in all 
these trials, and we are not astonished, or should not be, at 
the prosecution proving alibis for such men as Johnson, or the 
production of so many star-witnesses — such men as Noakes, 
Anderson and Weaver. We need not be surprised that such 
a man as Golden is to-day enjoying his liberty; that Culton 
is a boon companion of those whose duty it is to prosecute 
him; that Cecil is getting his liberty for his testimony, and 
that Youtsey expects his feet soon to walk on freedom's soil 
for his services here as a witness. 

There can be no doubt, gentlemen, that the detectives 



CAMPBELL'S METHODS 453 

have played a most important part, and a most damnable 
part, in the production of the evidence in this case. You 
remember Colonel Campbell said in his first speech to the 
jury in my case: "Detectives were called in, but they were 
baffled like the hounds in the pursuit of the fox which jumped 
to the sapling over the precipice, and then under the ledge of 
rock." He says that in that dilemma Mr. Franklin said 
to him one evening : " You are not known in Eastern Ken- 
tucky; go there." There is no doubt that he went there, 
gentlemen, for he met Robert Noakes at Big Stone Gap, 
under the nom de plume of Kleinmeyer. Mr. Campbell said 
in his speech : " Men whose time was worth five dollars a 
day worked in the mines of Bell County for less than one- 
fifth of that sum for the purpose of accounting for their 
presence in that county. One man painted fences and rocks 
in Laurel County with signs, and gave away hundreds of 
bottles of medicine for the sole purpose of accounting to 
such fellows as Jim Sparks and Jim Howard and others of 
like kidney as to why he was in that county." 

And, gentlemen, we do not have to rely upon Colonel 
Campbell's statement that detectives have been very busy from 
the beginning of this prosecution. You remember that 
Golden testified that Tom Cromwell, a detective, who had 
been up in Knox County, came to the Capital Hotel, in 
Frankfort, about the second of March, 1900, and wrote Golden 
a note to come over to the Capital Hotel. You remember 
that Golden told you that, in response to the invitation to meet 
Tom Cromwell at the Capital Hotel, he presented himself 
in person, and the next morning, at the early hour of five 
o'clock, he was speeding away over the country to the historic 
city of Cincinnati in the arms of his savior. Colonel Tom 
Campbell. 

You remember when the theory of this case was being 
formulated, the theory that the shot was fired from the office 
of the secretary of state, we find detectives playing important 
parts in that matter. You remember Mr. D. Mead Wood- 
soxi, that expert gentleman and expert witness. These ex- 
pert witnesses are always a remarkable set of fellows ; they 
can get out here in the streets of Georgetown and measure 



454 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

a cow's track and tell you the price of butter in New York 
City. And when this man Woodson was down at the hack- 
berry tree proving to a mathematical certainty, with his little 
surveying pins and a yarn string, that the shot that killed 
Goebel was fired from the office of the secretary of state, 
he told you that Robert Harding and Dee Armstrong were 
present on that occasion. Who are Robert Harding and Dee 
Armstrong? They are detectives; the paid puppets of the 
prosecution who have lent their gallant services, sacrificing 
services, to the unearthing of the guilty in this prose- 
cution. When Golden was preparing to confess ; when he was 
getting ready to turn state's evidence, we see the finger of 
Detective Tom Cromwell in the matter. When the bullet 
was found in the hackberry tree we find Dee Armstrong and 
Robert Harding officiating on that occasion. You remember 
the testimony of that most charming and most winsome 
lady, Miss Ella Smith by name, of the town of Barbours- 
ville, whose bewitching manner and seductive smiles captivated' 
the hearts of all. You remember that Miss Ella Smith, who 
was a witness for the prosecution, told you that Tom Cromwell 
wrote out her statement for her in Barboursville, and she com- 
mitted it to memory and recited it for us. She recited it well. 
Detective Cromwell swore out a warrant for my arrest; he 
swore out a warrant for the arrest of old man Davis. De- 
tective Russell took a number of identifying witnesses to see 
Jim Howard. A number of them assisted in my arrest at 
Lexington. So you see, gentlemen, that detectives have been 
swarming the state like a drove of hungry vultures. You find 
them in the Capital Hotel when Golden confesses ; you find 
them at Barboursville before he confesses ; you find them at 
the hackberry tree when a block of wood was taken out of 
the tree ; you find them present when the block of wood 
was opened ; you find them in Cincinnati when Golden first 
confessed ; you find them in Lexington with him after he 
confessed ; you find them swearing out warrants of arrest ; you 
find them everywhere. There are too many detectives and 
too many perjurers in this case. There are too many men 
who have their arms up to their elbows in that one-hundred- 
thousand-dollar reward. 



DETECTIVES WANT REWARD 455 

Do you want to help distribute that money, gentlemen? 
Do you want to become co-partners in that affair ? If you do, 
the opportunity is yours. You have an earnest invitation on 
the part of the Commonwealth. If you want to help distribute 
that money you have the privilege ; five thousand dollars is 
offered for my conviction. You make it possible for those 
hired detectives to get their share of the spoils; for if the 
detectives do not get the five thousand dollars offered for 
my conviction, who does get it, gentlemen? No part of the 
five thousand dollars offered for my scalp goes for the purpose 
of bringing the witnesses here, either for the Commonwealth 
or the defendant. The state pays for the bringing of witnesses 
here for the Commonwealth, and the defendant ha's to pay 
the expenses of his own witnesses. It is not for the purpose 
of keeping witnesses of the Commonwealth here ; they are 
allowed one dollar for each day they stay here. It is not for 
the purpose of paying their mileage or their way to the train. 
The law allows them more than enough for that. It does 
not go to the paying of lawyers in this case, for the law 
that set apart the appropriation says that none of the money 
is to go for the payment of the lawyers. It is not for the 
purpose of paying Mr. Franklin here for his services. He is 
allowed a certain salary, and is paid by the state. It is not 
for the purpose of paying you, gentlemen, for your services. 
You are allowed your per diem by the law of the state. 

Then, to whom does it go? It must go to somebody. It 
must be paid for some purpose. There is no stipulation in the 
law appropriating this enormous fund, saying that any part 
of it shall be to perjurers and suborners of perjury. But such 
people Vv^ill lay claim to that money. Did not Detectives Dee 
Armstrong and Robert Harding tell you from this witness- 
stand that they expected to lay claim to this money if I am 
convicted? The detectives who have furnished the proof in 
these cases, and those who have sworn to lies for pay, will lay 
claim to this money. Do not be deceived about it. They are 
now claiming it. Suppose Campbell should say to the detec- 
tives that he needs certain testimony ; Harding and Armstrong 
would give ten witnesses ten dollars each, in addition to the 
Commonwealth's paying them a dollar a day and so much 



456 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

mileage, to come and testify to certain sets of facts. It 
would not be good policy for any witness to swear to too 
much. That would not be skilled perjury. It would be bun- 
glesome subornation. Here you have these ten witnesses 
swearing to certain statements for the sum of one hundred 
dollars. That is a small amount, but the evidence of ten 
witnesses is considerable testimony; two hundred dollars at 
that rate would get twenty witnesses. That is not much of 
five thousand dollars. 

You ask: Do you mean to say that witnesses can be 
bought so cheap ? I answer : Yes ; some of them can, but not 
all. It takes more for some. But you can put it down, gen- 
tlemen, that nearly every man who sells his vote at an election 
would sell his testimony. You know that there are plenty 
of these. You know that there are more of them than the 
mass of humanity supposes. So you see how easy it is to 
buy testimony when you have the money. But one says : 
It looks as if some of them would be caught up with. And so 
they have been in this case. Weaver was caught up with ; 
Anderson was caught up with ; Noakes was caught up with ; 
Davis Harrod, at Frankfort, was caught up with, and is no 
more a witness in these cases ; D. Sinclair, the man who 
forged the telegrams at Frankfort, was caught up with and is 
no more used as a witness in this case. 

Yes, it is true that some of them are caught up with, but 
the smooth suborner of perjury knows better than to do it that 
way. The suborner has the perjurer meet you on the road 
somewhere or be with you alone somewhere. Golden says 
that we always talked alone when we were talking about 
private matters. The smooth suborner has no one pres- 
ent but you and the perjurer, and he has him say 
that while you are with him at a certain time and place, 
you made such and such a statement. You have to admit 
being with him at the time and place. There is no one to 
help you out of your predicament; no one to deny for you 
that you made such a statement ; no one to contradict the 
witnesses against you except yourself; no one to contradict 
them in this case except myself. Then, of course, the Com- 
monwealth argues that my own testimony sustains the wit- 



MAKING A " GOOD " WITNESS 457 

ness against me, and that, of course, I am trying to swear 
myself out. There is no way to contradict the perjurer save 
by my own testimony. 

Such has been the testimony of all the stars against me. 
Such has been the testimony of Anderson and Noakes and 
Golden and Culton from the very beginning; such is the 
testimony of Youtsey and Cecil. Deftectives and shrewd 
lawyers know how to prepare such testimony. That is the 
business of, by far, too many of them. Culton is a lawyer 
himself. He knows how to fix his. Golden's brother is a 
lawyer; he knows how to fix him. Colonel Campbell could 
suggest to Golden or Culton that a certain bit of testimony 
was needed and for him to try and remember it. They are in 
the remembering business. It stands them in hand to re- 
member well. They know it. It needs no detective work 
to encourage Golden and Culton to remember well. It needs 
no offer of money in the event that I am convicted, to spur 
them up to their best as perjurers. There are other incen- 
tives for them. 

Then, you ask, does the Commonwealth's attorney indorse 
it all, and is he a party to it all? I answer, no. I have 
known of cases where he has turned off would-be perjurers. 
The detective goes into the neighborhood of the witness. He 
suborns him. He then writes down to Mr. Franklin that a 
certain man would make a good witness for the Common- 
wealth. Mr. Franklin has him summoned either before the 
grand jury or as a witness in some of these cases. The wit- 
ness tells his story. He makes a good witness, and Mr. 
Franklin puts him on the stand. That is a part of the evi- 
dence of conviction. And after the conviction is had, the 
detective will come forward, claiming the five thousand dol- 
lars for the discovery of the testimony that leads to the 
conviction. 

Oh, gentlemen, be not deceived in this matter. They are 
already claiming it. It is a matter of current history, gentle- 
men, with which you are all familiar, that Dee Armstrong and 
Robert Harding of Louisville, who have been the paid pup- 
pets of the prosecution in the investigation of clues, and who 
have attended every trial of my case, and who are here 



458 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

now, have already put in a claim for my former conviction, 
alleging that they furnished the evidence with which to do 
it. You remember the fiscal court of Franklin County of- 
fered one thousand dollars' reward for the arrest and con- 
viction of Senator Goebel's assassin. Detectives Armstrong 
and Harding have put in a claim for that money, and allege 
they furnished the evidence upon which Youtsey and Jim 
Howard and myself were convicted. They also have put in 
a claim for five thousand dollars for the conviction of Yout- 
sey. They have been here on the grounds marshaling and 
training their witnesses, and now await your verdict, in the 
hope that they will be well paid for that marshaling and 
training. Did not Armstrong tell you that? The detectives 
are waiting for that five thousand dollars' reward, gentlemen ; 
that is the reason why they have bought so much testimony. 
They would purchase it against you as readily as they do 
against me, if there were as much in it for them. 

Be not deceived about it. Do you think there is enough 
evidence in this case to convict me? Is there a single man on 
this jury who thinks it? If there is, I want to say to that 
man if he will let Colonel Campbell suppose two things, 
he can convict him of the murder of Mr. Goebel. If you will 
let him suppose that you were an active partizan Republican 
in the campaign and contests of 1899 and 1900, and that you 
went to Frankfort a few days before Senator Goebel was 
killed — that is all that is necessary, these two things. You 
may say you do not understand what your being a Republican 
or going to Frankfort would have to do with the killing 
of Mr. Goebel, or how you could be convicted for that. Let 
us see. 

In the first place, he would charge, by indictment, a Golden, 
and a Culton, and a Youtsey, and a Cecil, who reside in your 
neighborhood, or who were thrown with you in the transaction 
of business in the winter of 1899 and 1900. And you have got 
Goldens and Cultons and Youtseys and Cecils and Brough- 
tons in your community, gentlemen. Be not deceived. There 
are men in your neighborhood who, if they were indicted 
for an offense like this and could get their liberty by testi- 
fying against you, would swear to anything they were told 



WAYS OF THE SUBORNER 459 

to swear. You know that. There are men in your com- 
munity who would swear your life away for even a small 
slice of one hundred thousand dollars. You know that. 

Let me show you how you could be convicted for killing 
Mr. Goebel, by letting Colonel Campbell suppose the two things 
of which I have just spoken. He would prove by 'some 
Wharton Golden whom you had working for you on your 
farm, that you were an active and violent Republican. This 
would be known to be true; this would help strengthen his 
testimony against you. He would prove by him that while you 
and he were alone together on the farm and about your 
place of business, you had said to him that Goebel ought 
to be killed ; that if you were up at Frankfort and no one else 
would kill him, you would kill him yourself. That is 
what Finley Anderson swore against me. He would prove 
by him that you discussed plans to kill Goebel in the Capital 
Hotel, on the streets of Frankfort, and from the office of 
the secretary of state. He would prove by him that you 
said you would be willing to kill off enough Democrats 
in the Legislature to make a Republican majority, and that 
you also indorsed the killing of the Democratic members 
of the court of appeals. He would prove by him that you 
said out at your barn one morning that if things didn't settle 
up at Frankfort pretty soon, you intended to go up there and 
make use of a few Colt forty-fives or a Marlin rifle. 

He would prove by Culton that he lived in your neighbor- 
hood during the contests of 1899 and 1900; that he often 
passed your home, and that you and he had frequent talks 
about the contest at Frankfort, and that you said to him 
you believed that if a large body of mountaineers would come 
to Frankfort with their guns and either kill enough Democrats 
to make a Republican majority or kill Mr. Goebel, the 
contest would end favorably to the Republicans; that you 
said that when Goebel was dead and in hell the Demo- 
crats would not have another man who could hold them 
together. He would prove by him that you and he had come 
here to Georgetown about the middle of January, 1900, and 
that you showed him a letter you had written to Governor 
Taylor inclosing twenty-five dollars to help defray the ex- 



46o MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

penses of the mountaineers to Frankfort and advising their 
coming, and that your judgment was that when they got to 
Frankfort they should give the Legislature thirty minutes 
to settle the contest, and if they didn't do it, kill the last 
damned one of them. 

He would prove by some Broughton in your county that you 
approached him one day to find out who, in his judgment, 
would be a good man to kill Goebel, and that he referred you 
to Cecil and Steele. He would prove by some Cecil and 
Steele in your neighborhood that you did approach them and 
try to get them to go to Frankfort and kill Mr, Goebel, and 
discussed with him how it could be done from the office of 
the secretary of state. He would prove by Youtsey that he 
lived in your neighborhood before he went to Frankfort; that 
he knew you well ; that at the time of the governor's contest 
he met you in the hallway of the Executive Building at 
Frankfort a day or two before the killing, at the time you went 
to Frankfort, and that you said to him you believed the 
only way to settle the contest was to have Goebel killed. He 
would prove by him that he fully indorsed that sentiment, 
and said he had been trying to do that for several days 
and suggested that he now had a slick scheme by which he 
could go into the office of the secretary of state, pull down 
the window blind, shoot Goebel from that office window 
and then run down the stairway, and that nobody would 
ever know it. He would prove by him that you indorsed that 
plan and pulled out of your pocket fifty dollars and gave it 
to him and told him to carry it out, and that you would 
leave the details of it to him, and that you would go in and 
see Taylor and have him call out the militia to protect Yout- 
sey and others after the killing. 

Take this state of the case, gentlemen, and why wouldn't I 
have a stronger case against you than they have against me? 
The mountaineers came to Frankfort on your advice; the shot 
was fired from the office of the secretary of state upon your 
indorsement; the militia was called out upon your suggestion. 
How would you get out of it, Mr. Rice? Golden, Culton, 
Cecil, Youtsey, have testified that there was no one present 
at the time each of them had their alleged talk with you. 



NEFARIOUS WORK 461 

You could only contradict them with your own testimony, 
and the prosecution would say that you are the defendant 
in the case and swearing for your liberty and could not be 
believed, and, besides that, they would say your own 
testimony corroborated the testimony of all these witnesses 
against you. They would say that you admit having Golden 
working for you on your farm and admit being with him 
at the time and places he alleges, and that the only thing 
you deny is the damaging part of the conversations ; that you 
substantiate the testimony of Culton by admitting you 
did frequently talk with him at your gate during the contest, 
and that you admit coming to Georgetown on the occasion 
testified to by him. They would say that you corroborate 
Broughton by admitting that he lived in your neighborhood, 
and that he did have an opportunity of talking to you, and by 
the further fact that Cecil and Steele say you approached 
them on the mission you talked to Broughton about. They 
would say that you corroborate Youtsey by admitting you 
were at Frankfort at the time he testified to, and by the 
further fact that the shot was fired from the office of the 
secretary of state and by the still further fact that the militia 
was called out after the shooting. 

If the jury who tried you should give full faith and credit to 
the testimony, there is no reason why you or any other 
man in the community could not be convicted with one hun- 
dred thousand dollars and a horde of unscrupulous detectives 
to buy up the proof. Golden, Cecil, Youtsey, Culton and 
Broughton say they had these talks with me, and that 
no one was present but themselves and me. I never had the 
alleged talks with these men. The Commonwealth is after 
a conviction in this case, and Dee Armstrong and Robert 
Harding are after the money. They will have rival claimants. 
Other detectives have been active. Detective Griffin, of Somer- 
set, will be a formidable contestant. 

By your verdict, gentlemen, do you propose to further this 
nefarious work? Do you propose to be a party to taking 
away the liberty of an innocent man ? Answer me that, gentle- 
men. And you will be a party to it if you bring in a verdict 
of guilty, because without such a verdict they can not get the 



462 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

money. As a citizen and taxpayer of this Commonwealth, do 
you desire to plunder the treasury of this state, in order to get 
the money to pay irresponsible detectives to suborn witnesses 
to swear away the lives of one of your innocent fellow 
citizens? The opportunity is yours, gentlemen. The Com- 
monwealth invites you to embrace it. Will you do it? How 
can you gentlemen bring in a verdict of guilty when the 
foundation stones of this prosecution are composed of per- 
jurers? How can you bring in a verdict of guilty when you 
see that all the material testimony in this case received its 
being and was brought to fruition at the hands of conscience- 
less detectives and other suborners or perjurers? 

Two juries have sat upon this case before and have said by 
their verdicts that I am guilty. This was at a time, gentlemen, 
when the amount of perjury in this case was not so well known 
as now ; finally my case was reviewed by a higher court 
and a new trial granted. Suppose that you should render the 
same verdict, and suppose I would be compelled to abide by 
that verdict, and it should be found out, after all, that I am in- 
nocent, and it will be found out ; suppose that in the mean- 
time my frail constitution breaks down under the strain 
which I have been forced to bear for the past few years ; 
suppose that my vitality is sapped and disease takes possession 
of my vital forces ; suppose that my power of usefulness is all 
destroyed ; suppose that in the meantime my aged mother 
could no longer stand the strain of witnessing the awful in- 
juries done her son, and her soul takes it's flight for the 
world of spirits, following that of my poor father, who died 
but a few months ago. And wh^en the facts surrounding this 
murder become known, as they will become known, and the 
world knows that I had nothing more to do with the murder 
of Senator Goebel than the jury which tried me, or had 
Mrs. Surratt and others, who were wrongfully convicted for 
alleged complicity in the assassination of Abraham Lincoln, 
how can you, gentlemen, live amid the ruin that you have 
caused? How could you claim as a home the state whose 
fair name you have tarnished? How could you live in a coun- 
try whose fair name you have disgraced in the committing 
of judicial murder? How could you look your fellow men 



JURORS ASKED TO BE JUST 463 

in the face, attend your churches and hear the gospel of justice 
and humanity and mercy and goodness preached? 

Oh, gentlemen, the awful sin of a conviction in this case, 
if you so far forget yourselves as to commit it, will always 
be a crushing weight upon your conscience. It will prey upon 
you day by day and your slumbers will be disturbed by it at 
night. In vain will you wander this world around in seeking 
a place of painless rest. The ghost of your awful crime would 
be with you to upbraid you with a sense of your dreadful 
wrong. And when your stay in this world is over ; when you 
have traveled through the dark valley and shadow of death 
and crossed the barren peaks of eternity, the acts that 
you have done here will follow you and be a witness against 
you in the great day of judgment, to tell the wrongs and 
rehearse the agonies you brought to a poor innocent and help- 
less prisoner here on earth. 

But, gentlemen, I believe you are going to do right in this 
case. You can not give weight to perjured testimony; you 
can not credit men swearing for immunity ; and if you are not 
convinced of my innocence, you can not be convinced of my 
guilt. And I believe you are going to give me the full benefit 
of the doubt which this most remarkable and most mysterious 
case has left to us all, as you have taken a solemn oath that 
you would do ; and when you do that, gentlemen, I shall be 
acquitted and you will have discharged your duty fully to me, 
to your conscience and to your God. And when you, gen- 
tlemen, are called to give account of your stewardship here 
upon earth, the deed of your verdict of acquittal in this case 
will stand by your side and plead, like an angel, trumpet- 
tongued, for your acquittal and your deliverance. You may 
talk of the ruin of homes brought about by strong drink; 
talk of the pains and pangs of poverty; talk of forfeited 
friendships and trusts betrayed; talk of the misery of the 
witness who has sold his honor for gold or blackened his 
soul with the awful crime of perjury; but none of these com- 
pares in wretchedness with the juror who fails to discharge 
his duty when the life of a fellow citizen is involved. 

I must soon close. I have done my best to make clear the 
facts in this case. I know that my words have been weak. I 



'464 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

shall have to trust to you to do better work. I am not guilty. 
Something has been said by the prosecution about my lawyers 
begging for mercy. No, no, Mr. Franklin; no, no, gentlemen 
of the jury, I am not begging for mercy in this case; I am 
asking for justice alone at your hands. 

But speaking of mercy calls to my mind the German legend 
that describes man in his creation. It seems by that legend, 
that at the time the Almighty decided to make man, He 
called his attributes. Truth, Justice and Mercy, before Him 
and questioned them concerning it. To Truth, He said: 
"Shall we make man?" And Truth answered and said: 
" Make him not ; he will destroy Thy statutes." He then 
turned to Justice and said: " Shall we make man?" And Jus- 
tice said : " Oh, Father, create him not ; he will destroy Thy 
statutes, bring want and misery to light, and bathe his hand 
in human blood ; Father, create him not." And Mercy, kneel- 
ing at the throne, answered : " Oh, create him, Father, and I 
will follow him wherever he goes ; by his errors he shall 
learn wisdom, and at last I will bring him back to Thee." 
And man was created at the behest of Mercy, 

And whatever may be said of the other noble attributes 
of man, there is none that so fills his life and the lives of 
others with joy while he remains here on earth; none that so 
prepares him for the Great Beyond. The Angel of Mercy 
stood by the side of Abraham Lincoln in every act of his 
public and private life, and whispered : " Be merciful, be merci- 
ful." And he was merciful. 

When Robert E. Lee, great man and greater statesman 
that he was, surrendered his army at Appomattox in good 
faith, he would not let his men go home and keep up a 
guerrilla warfare. Upon his decision as to what should be 
done rested the peace of the South and the future relation 
of the states. He was a soldier, a patriot, a statesman, and, 
above all, the noblest handiwork of God, an honest man. 
He was not blinded to his duty by the hot blood of revenge and 
war still rankling in the breasts of many Southern gentlemen. 
He was not moved by the passions and prejudices of the hour. 
He stood like a stone wall for the ultimate good of the South 
and the glory of the Union. Upon his shoulders rested the 



DUTY, NOT REVENGE 465 

destiny of the Southland, and it took a great man to say 
to his men : " Go home ; resume the vocations of peaceful 
lives ; be as faithful to the Republic as you have been to the 
Confederacy." 

And when certain men wanted Grant to take steps to arrest 
Lee and charge him with treason, he said in no uncertain 
tones that Robert E. Lee fought for the South because he 
thought it his duty ; that he was loyal to principle and true 
to honor and that such accusation should not be made. 

Lee and Grant were patriots. They stood upon the sub- 
lime heights of manhood and duty. Their judgments were not 
warped. Their devotion to duty could not be affected by 
the appeals of partizans. The prosperity and the welfare 
of our country depended upon noble and God-like action on 
their part. No particular section of the Union to please, but 
a country to serve. And, gentlemen, I believe that you will 
climb the sublime heights of duty in this case, with no set of 
men to please, but your country to serve. 

Men, I must soon close. I am going to leave this case in 
your hands. I am not guilty of that with which I am charged. 
The decision of all the juries in all this world, the testimony 
of all the witnesses in this land, can not make it so. The fact 
that I am innocent is unchangeable. Some things change and 
some things never do. You, gentlemen of the jury, and the 
interested spectators in this court-room, are all passing on to 
the time when your existence will be no more. You will soon 
have played your part in the great drama of life, and you will 
soon step from the stage of action over the River Styx into 
the shadowy realms beyond. All the material things change, 
but there is one thing that all the witnesses in all this world 
can not change, and that all the juries in the world can not 
alter, and that is that I am innocent of that with which I am 
charged. That fact will live to the end of time. It is as 
changeless as eternity. 

These mad days, these prosecutions, will soon be over. Any 
temporary advantage that may be given to either political 
party by a verdict of guilty or a verdict of not guilty will soon 
pass away. Posterity will judge us by the rightfulness or the 
wrongfulness of our course and conduct. And I feel, gentle- 



466 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

men, that the angel of justice has been standing upon the 
very threshold of your hearts since this trial began and saying 
almost aloud to your consciences: "Do justice to this op- 
pressed young man." 

The prosecution expects you, gentlemen, to close your eyes 
to the facts in this case, and expects you to convict me by 
reason of your politics and what they have proven against 
others. You remember, gentlemen, a great deal of the time 
of this court and your time has been occupied in listening to 
various witnesses proving what others did. It is unfair to 
you and unfair to me to attempt to have you convict me on 
the actions of others. I have suffered a great deal, gentle- 
men; God alone knows how much, but it is not for what I 
have done, but for what others have done. 

You know I have suffered; I have been in prison nearly 
four years. You, gentlemen, have been engaged in this trial 
not quite four weeks. You have been in a kind of prison 
since this trial began. You have, in a measure, been robbed 
of your liberty. You have been kept together and had an 
officer over you ; have been forced to stay together and 
eat at the same table at the same time and to sleep in the 
same room. I know that the days have hung heavily on your 
hands, and that the nights have been long and wearisome. I 
know that you have been eager to get back to your homes ; 
been anxious to be with your wives and children. They, too, 
have been thinking the time long and are keeping eager eyes to 
see you approach; they will meet you with open arms and 
tender caresses. 

It has been a long time to them since they saw you ; it has 
been a long time to you since you saw them ; but how short a 
time compared with over three years, with twelve long months 
in each year, and each month having thirty long days and 
thirty long and weary nights, in a prison cell, with 
the trash of the earth for your daily companions, and with 
iron bars and steel walls to mock your very existence. There, 
in a lonesome cell, filled with foul air and creeping vermin, and 
separated from family and friends, hunted up and stared at by 
every vulgar curiosity-seeker in the land ; classed and treated 
as a criminal and branded as an outlaw, — such an existence 



MY MOTHER'S MESSAGE 467 

is a living death; it is a million deaths. General Reu- 
ben Davis, of Mississippi, once said : " A prison cell 
has horrors for me that the regions of the damned have not. 
The one is the inhumanity of man to man; the other the 
just punishment inflicted by an All- wise God for the infraction 
of His decrees." 

And should any of you gentlemen be tempted to render a 
verdict of guilty, and consign me to a living tomb for life, 
you should weigh well its consequences, for as has been stated, 
the first, the middle and the last consideration for a jury is the 
consequence of its verdict. 

I can see my poor mother now, who was unable, by reason 
of physical infirmities, to attend this trial. She is sitting 
in her distant home, with a face sallow, wrinkled and care- 
worn from the responsibilities of life and the worries and 
troubles caused by the unjust prosecution of her son. With 
a frail and trembling hand, she moves back the white hair from 
her sorrow-ridden brow. She casts her waiting, watery eyes 
toward the scene of this trial and pleads with you, though far 
away, to spare her son the burdens of further trials and 
dishonor. She pleads with you for justice to her son. She 
begs you not to be frightened away from your plain duty 
by the cruel invectives heaped upon his head by these gentle- 
men in the heat of argument. She implores you not to blot 
out the good name she has earned for her children ; not to 
blacken the name of her home and family by a verdict of 
guilty; jiot to bring into disrepute and dishonor the name 
of her dead husband and his offspring; not to hold her up in 
shame and blight the fondest hopes of her heart ; not to scan- 
dalize the evening of her life by throwing at the feet of her 
son the commission of such an awful offense, when she knows 
that he could not be guilty of such a deed. 

She beseeches you to be led alone, in your consideration in 
this case, by the lamplight of duty, and not be tempted to 
outrage yourselves and the innocent by political bias, partizan 
feeling or party advantage. She begs you not to send her to 
an early grave in shame and dishonor ; not to cut her son down 
ill the days of his youth ; not to extinguish the dearest hope 
of • her heart; not to erase every hope of happiness for her 



468 MY ADDRESS TO THE JURY 

and for him ; not to bring down her mourning age into a grave 
of despair ; not to take from her that which is dearer than life 
itself, and put upon her more thaxi she can bear. She asks 
you not to reward liars, nor put the badge of respectability 
upon the brow of perjurers by your verdict; not to feed the 
greed of men upon the life-blood of her son, or upon the vitals 
of our Commonwealth; not to walk ruthlessly upon broken 
homes and broken bodies; not to poison or kill her peace on 
earth and blight and ruin her confidence in men ; not to murder 
your own souls and smite your own consciences. 

This is the speech my mother "makes to you. My words 
are barren and weak in conveying to you her message, but I 
have done my best and by your interest in this case you seem 
to say : " Stop. Speak no more. Let us have this case. Let 
the work of justice begin, for it has long been delayed. Stop, 
that we may right this wrong at once. Speak no more, but 
give us an opportunity to tear the shackles from your limbs, 
take the pallor of the dungeon from your cheeks, and re- 
store you to health and send you home to your mother's 
fireside." 

And my prayer is, gentlemen, that the Giver of Light may 
remove the mystery surrounding this case and reveal the truth 
to you as it is. May He point out to you your duty and give 
you strength to do it — yes, to liberate the suffering innocent 
and send an outraged boy back to the country he loves and 
to the countrymen who love him. 

I thank you, gentlemen, for your kind patience and indulgent 
hearing. 



APPENDIX D 

INSTRUCTIONS ASKED BY THE DEFENDANT, BUT 
REFUSED BY THE COURT 

Scott Circuit Court, 
Commonwealth of Kentucky, 

Plaintiif, 
vs. 
Caleb Powers, 

Defendant. 

The defendant moves the Court to instruct the jury as 
follows : 

A. No. I. The Court instructs the jury that under the 
indictment and proof herein it must find the defendant not 
guilty. 

B. No. 2. The evidence of an accomplice in this case is not 
sufficient to convict, unless the same is corroborated by other 
evidence tending to show the commission of the offense and 
connecting the defendant therewith, and the evidence of one 
accomplice or co-conspirator, does not and can not corroborate 
another accomplice or co-conspirator. 

C. No. 3. Unless the jury shall believe from the evidence, 
beyond a reasonable doubt, that either H. E. Youtsey, Berry 
Howard, Richard Combs, James Howard or Holland Whittaker 
actually fired the shot that killed William Goebel, and that 
the same was fired in pursuance to and in furtherance of a 
conspiracy on the part of the defendant with the one so firing 
said shot, you must find the defendant not guilty. 

D. No. 4. The defendant can not be held criminally respon- 
sible for bringing, or aiding others to bring, armed or unarmed 
men to Frankfort, unless they were brought there in further- 
ance of a conspiracy to kill William Goebel, or bring about his 
death; and unless the jury believes from the evidence, beyond 

469 



470 INSTRUCTIONS ASKED BY DEFENSE 

a reasonable doubt, that the bringing of armed men to Frank- 
fort was in pursuance of a conspiracy entered into by defendant 
with others to kill and murder William Goebel, and for that 
purpose, you must find the defendant not guilty. 

E. No. 5. Even though the jury may believe from the evi- 
dence, beyond a reasonable doubt, that the defendant conspired 
with others named in the indictment to bring armed men to 
Frankfort for the purpose of bringing about the death of 
William Goebel, yet unless you shall further believe from 
the evidence, beyond a reasonable doubt, that said Goebel was 
killed by some one so brought there, and in furtherance of 
said conspiracy, you will find for the defendant not guilty. 

F. No. 6. The law presumes the defendant to be innocent 
of the charge against him, until every fact essential to his 
guilt has been proven, beyond a reasonable doubt; and it is 
your duty, if you can reasonably do so, to reconcile all the 
facts and circumstances proven in the case with that presump- 
tion ; and if upon the whole case you have a reasonable doubt 
of his guilt having been proven, you must find him not guilty. 

G. No. 7. Although the jury may believe from the evidence, 
beyond a reasonable doubt, that some one of those charged 
in the indictment as a principal fired the shot that killed 
William Goebel, yet if you shall further believe from the 
evidence that the person so firing the shot did so of his own 
malice and volition and not in pursuance of a conspiracy en- 
tered into by defendant with him for that purpose, or if you 
have a reasonable doubt on this point, you must acquit the 
defendant. 

H. No. 8. Before the defendant can be convicted under the 
indictment, it is incumbent upon the Commonwealth to show, 
beyond all reasonable doubt, by credible evidence, that the 
shooting of William Goebel, from which shooting he died, 
was done by some person or persons, acting under the advice 
or counsel or command or encouragement or procurement of 
the defendant. And although the jury should believe from the 
evidence, beyond a reasonable doubt, that the defendant in 
fact advised generally the commission, in certain contingen- 
cies, of acts amounting to a violation of the law, yet if the said 
shooting was done by some third party, of his own mere 



INSTRUCTIONS ASKED BY DEFENSE 471 

volition, hatred, malice, or ill-will, and not materially influ- 
enced, either directly or indirectly, by such advice or counsel 
or command or encouragement or procurement of the de- 
fendant, or if he was actuated only by the advice of others 
not charged, and for whose advice the defendant is not re- 
sponsible, the jury should find the defendant not guilty. 

I. No. 9. The defendant being indicted as an accessory 
before the fact to the murder of William Goebel, you can 
not find him guilty as such, unless you believe from the evi- 
dence that the person who did the killing has been identified 
and his guilt proven, beyond a reasonable doubt, and that the 
defendant conspfred with such person to do the act. 

J. No. 10. The jury is instructed that it can not find 
the defendant guilty upon the testimony alone of an accom- 
plice or accomplices, but that the testimony of such accomplice 
or accomplices must be corroborated by other evidence, and 
every fact material to defendant's guilt, proven by such accom- 
plice or accomplices, must be corroborated by other evidence 
in order to convict the defendant upon such testimony, and 
the mere killing of said Goebel, and the circumstances thereof, 
is not corroborative of such accomplice or accomplices. 

K. No. II, Although the jury may believe from the evi- 
dence, beyond a reasonable doubt, that the defendant, with 
others, took armed men to Frankfort for an unlawful pur- 
pose, yet if the jury further believes from the evidence that 
such unlawful purpose was afterward abandoned, and that 
William Goebel was not killed in pursuance of such unlawful 
purpose, if it believes from the evidence there was such 
unlawful purpose, then the jury must find the defendant not 
guilty. 

L, No. 12. The evidence of A. L. Reed, J. B. Watkins, 
Zepekiah Settles, and H. C. Hazelwood can only be con- 
sidered by the jury for the purpose of contradicting and 
affecting the credibility and interest of the witness, and not 
as substantive testimony against the defendant. 

A copy attest: George S. Robinson, C. S. C. S. 

By A. J. Coffer, D. C. 



472 INSTRUCTIONS TO THE JURY 



INSTRUCTIONS GIVEN BY THE COURT ON MY 

FIRST TRIAL 



The Court instructs the jury that a criminal conspiracy is a 
corrupt combination of two or more persons by concerted 
action to do an unlawful act or do a lawful act by unlawful 
means. 

The Court further instructs the jury that an accessory 
before the fact is one, who, being absent at the time the 
act is committed procures, aids, counsels, commands, advises 
or abets another to commit it, and may be taken, tried and 
convicted, although the person who committed the act is never 
identified, apprehended or tried. 

II 

If the jury believes from the evidence, beyond a reasonable 
doubt, that the defendant, Caleb Powers, did in Franklin 
County, and before the finding of the indictment therein, un- 
lawfully and feloniously and with malice aforethought and 
with intent to bring about or to procure the death of William 
Goebel, conspire with W. H. Culton, F. W. Golden, Green 
Golden, John L. Powers, John Davis, Charles Finley, W. S. 
Taylor, Henry Youtsey, James Howard, Berry Howard, Hol- 
land Whittaker, Richard Combs, or any one or more of them, 
or other person or persons unknown to the jury, and acting 
with them or either of them, and did advise, counsel, encour- 
age, aid or procure Henry Youtsey, James Howard, Berry 
Howard, Holland Whittaker, Richard Combs, or any one or 
more of them, or other person or persons unknown to the 
jury, and acting with them or either of them, and did advise, 
counsel, encourage, aid or procure Henry Youtsey, James 
Howard, Berry Howard, Holland Whittaker, Richard Combs, 
or any of them, or any unknown person or persons acting 
v/ith them or either of them, to unlawfully, wilfully, feloni- 
ously, and with malice aforethought, shoot and kill William 



INSTRUCTIONS TO THE JURY 473 

Goebel, and that, in pursuance of said conspiracy and in pur- 
suance to counsel, advice, encouragement, aid or procure- 
ment, so as aforesaid given by the defendant, the said Henry 
Youtsey, James Howard, Berry Howard, Holland Whittaker, 
Richard Combs, or other person or persons unknown to the 
jury acting with them, or either or any of them, did shoot 
and wound the said William Goebel with a gun or pistol loaded 
with powder and leaden ball or other hard substance, and 
from which 'shooting and wounding the said William Goebel 
did then and there within a year and a day die, they ought to 
find the defendant guilty of murder and fix his punishment 
at death or confinement in the state penitentiary for life in 
their discretion. 



Ill 

If the jury believes from the evidence, beyond a reasonable 
doubt, that the defendant, Caleb Powers, conspired with, 
aided, abetted, couHseled or advised W. H. Culton, F. W. Gol- 
den, Green Golden, John L. Powers, John Davis, Charles Fin- 
ley, W. S. Taylor, Henry Youtsey, James Howard, Berry How- 
ard, Holland Whittaker, Richard Combs, or either or any of 
them, or some unknown person or persons acting with either of 
them, to kill and murder William Goebel, and in pursuance of 
such conspiracy and in furtherance thereof, the said William 
Goebel was killed by Henry Youtsey, James Howard, Berry 
Howard, Holland Whittaker, Richard Combs, or either or 
any of them, or by some unknown person or persons acting 
with them as a member or members of such conspiracy, by 
shooting said William Goebel with a gun or pistol loaded 
with a leaden or steel ball or other hard substance, and from 
which shooting and wounding said Goebel then and there did 
within a year and a day die, it ought to find the said Caleb 
Powers guilty, whether he was present at the time of the 
shooting or wounding or not, or whether the identity of the 
person so shooting and wounding said William Goebel be es- 
tablished or not; and if the jury shall find the defendant 
guilty it ought to fix his punishment as indicated in instruction 
No. 2. 



474 INSTRUCTIONS TO THE JURY 

IV 

If the jury believes from the evidence, beyond a reasonable 
doubt, that the defendant, Caleb Powers, conspired with 
W. H. Culton, F. W. Golden, Green Golden, John L. Powers, 
John Davis, James Howard, Berry Howard, Charles Finley, W. 
S, Taylor, Holland Whittaker, Richard Combs, Henry Youtsey, 
or either or any of them, or other person or persons unknown 
to the jury acting with them to bring a number of armed 
men to Frankfort for the purpose of doing an unlawful or 
criminal act in pursuance of such conspiracy, defendant did 
advise, counsel or encourage the killing of members of the 
Legislature, said William Goebel being a member thereof, and 
said Goebel was killed in pursuance of such advice, counsel, 
or encouragement, then the defendant is guilty of murder, 
whether the person who perpetrated the act which resulted in 
the death of William Goebel be identified or not, and if the 
killing of said William Goebel was committed in pursuance 
of such advice, counsel or encouragement, and was induced 
and brought about thereby, it does not matter what change, 
if any, was made by the conspirators, if any was made, as to 
their original designs or intentions, or the manner of accom- 
plishing the unlawful purpose of the conspiracy. 



If the jury believes from the evidence, beyond a reasonable 
doubt, that there was in existence, in the county of Franklin 
and the state of Kentucky, a conspiracy to kill and murder 
William Goebel, as set forth in the indictment, and that the 
defendant, Caleb Powers, was a party to said conspiracy, and 
that William Goebel was killed by one of the persons named in 
the indictment, to wit : W. H. Culton, F. W. Golden, Green 
Golden, John L. Powers, John Davis, Charles Finley, W. S. 
Taylor, Henry Youtsey, James Howard, Berry Howard, Hol- 
land Whittaker, Richard Combs, or by any person or persons 
unknown acting with the defendant and in manner as set 
forth in the indictment, and the shot was fired which brought 
about his death in furtherance of such conspiracy, all persons 
who were members of such conspiracy at the time were 



INSTRUCTIONS TO THE JURY 475 

guilty of murder, and if the jury further believes from the 
evidence, beyond a reasonable doubt, that the defendant, Caleb 
Powers, was a member of such conspiracy at the time, it 
ought to find him guilty, although the jury may believe from 
the evidence at the time of the shooting, wounding and 
killing of William Goebel that said Powers was not present, 
and the time of the killing of said Goebel had not been 
definitely fixed and agreed upon by the conspirators, if there 
was a conspiracy to kill said Goebel. 

VI 

If the jury believes from the evidence, beyond a reasonable 
doubt, that a conspiracy was formed between the defendant 
and W. H. Culton, F. W. Golden, Green Golden, John L. 
Powers, John Davis, Charles Finley, W. S. Taylor, Henry 
Youtsey, James Howard, Berry Howard, Holland Whittaker, 
or either or any of them, or with others to the jury unknown 
acting in concert with them, or either of them, to kill William 
Goebel, then, after the formation of said conspiracy, if any, 
every act and declaration of each of the conspirators done or 
said in furtherance of the common design, before the consum- 
mation thereof, became the act or declaration of all engaged 
in the conspiracy. 

VII 

The Court instructs the jury that if it believes from the 
evidence, beyond a reasonable doubt, that the defendant, Caleb 
Powers, conspired with W. H. Culton, F. W. Golden, Green 
Golden, John L. Powers, John Davis, Charles Finley, W. S. 
Taylor, Henry Youtsey, James Howard, Berry Howard, Hol- 
land Whittaker, Richard Combs, or any one or more of them, 
or with some other person or persons unknown to the jury act- 
ing with them, or either of them, to do some unlawful act, and 
that in pursuance of such conspiracy or in furtherance thereof, 
the said Henry Youtsey, James Howard, Berry Howard, Hol- 
land Whittaker, Richard Combs, or some one of them, or some 
other person unknown to the jury acting with them or with 
those who conspired with the defendant, if any such conspir- 



476 INSTRUCTIONS TO THE JURY 

acy there was, to do the unlawful act, did shoot and kill 
William Goebel, the defendant is guilty, although the jury 
may believe from the evidence that the original purpose was 
not to procure or bring about the death of William Goebel, 
but was for some other unlawful and criminal purpose. 

VIII 

The jury can not convict the defendant upon the testimony 
of an accomplice, unless such testimony be corroborated by 
other evidence tending to connect the defendant with the 
commission of the offense, and the corroboration is not suf- 
ficient if it merely shows that the offense was committed 
and the circumstances thereof. 



IX 

Every fact and circumstance necessary to constitute the 
guilt of the defendant ought to be proved to the satisfaction 
of the jury, beyond a reasonable doubt, and unless the defend- 
ant has been so proven guilty, beyond a reasonable doubt, the 
jury ought to find him not guilty. 

Thereupon, after four of the five speeches for the defendant 
and four of the five speeches for the Commonwealth had been 
made, the Court, of its own motion, added to the seventh in- 
struction above set out, as having been given by the Court, 
the following words, viz : " The words ' some unlawful act,' 
as used in this instruction, means some act to alarm, to excite 
terror or the infliction of bodily harm." To which action of 
the Court in thus adding to said instruction and to the addi- 
tion to the instruction, the defendant at the time objected 
and excepted and still excepts. The said instruction, after the 
addition above referred to was made, reads as follows : 

"The Court instructs the jury that if it believes from the 
evidence, beyond a reasonable doubt, that the defendant, Caleb 
Powers, conspired with W. H. Culton, F. W. Golden, Green 
Golden, John L. Powers, John Davis, Charles Finley, W. S. 
Taylor, Henry Youtsey, James Howard, Berry Howard, Hoi- 



INSTRUCTIONS TO THE JURY 477 

land Whittaker, Richard Combs, or any one or more of them, or 
with some other person or persons unknown to the jury acting 
with them or either of them, to do some unlawful act, and 
that in pursuance of such conspiracy or in furtherance thereof, 
the said Henry Youtsey, James Howard, Berry Howard, Hol- 
land Whittaker, Richard Combs, or some one of them or some 
other person unknown to the jury acting with them or with 
those who conspired with the defendant, if any such conspiracy 
wa's there to do the unlawful act, did shoot and kill William 
Goebel, the defendant is guilty, although the jury may believe 
from the evidence that the original purpose was not to procure 
or bring about the death of William Goebel, but was for some 
other unlawful and criminal purpose. 

The words, " Some unlawful act," as used in this instruction, 
means some act to alarm, to excite terror or the infliction of 
bodily harm. 

The foregoing were all the instructions asked, given or 
refused. 

A copy attest : George S. Robinson, C. S. C S. 

By A. J. Coffer, D. C. 



APPENDIX E 

GOVERNOR DURBIN'S LETTER TO THE GOVERNOR 
OF KENTUCKY 

Indianapolis, Ind., November 2, 1901. 

Dear Sir: For the second time requisitions have been 
made to the governor of this Commonwealth, issued by 
your authority, asking for the extradition of William S. 
Taylor arid Charles Finley, alleged fugitives from justice 
from the state of Kentucky, and at this time residing in the 
state of Indiana. The indictment presented charges these men 
with being accessories before the fact to the wilful murder 
of William Goebel. I respectfully decline to honor the requi- 
sitions. 

The reasons given for a similar action on the part of my 
predecessor, the lamented ex-Governor Mount, still obtain 
in a pertinent manner as a basis for this refusal, reinforced 
as they are by events that have occurred since that time, 
which only tend to establish the conviction of those who 
believe in equal and exact justice under the law of all men, 
that the time has not yet arrived within the environment 
of this prosecution whereby an unprejudiced and non-partizan 
hearing of a trial could be had. I choose to make use of 
the right and the duty as the executive of the Commonwealth 
to exercise a discretionary power of refusal, to the end that 
the purposes of persecution, which seem to be the conspicuous 
feature of this prosecution, may not force these men before 
a court partizan to the very extreme of vindictiveness and 
a jury organized for conviction in its personnel and impanel- 
ment. 

I have given careful and conscientious consideration to the 
evidence produced in the case already heard of the persons 
accused of complicity in the murder of William Goebel, as 

478 



GOVERNOR DURBIN'S LETTER 479 

far as it has been placed in my hands by the attorneys for 
the prosecution, and I unhesitatingly affirm that conviction 
based upon such a mass of self-evident perjury reflects the 
poisoned passions of a court and jury, and strengthens the 
belief that were those requisitions honored I would be only 
aiding the determination of the prosecution to convict these 
men without any reference to the law, justice or fact. I can 
not cause a man, from whom the presumption of innocence 
should never be stripped, except by legal methods, to be sub- 
jected to the rapine of political persecution. Kentucky is a 
Commonwealth revered for its high sense of justice and 
honor; it has given to the jurisprudence of the country some 
of the ablest lawyers of the nation ; it has honorable repre- 
sentation on the supreme bench ; it is the birthplace of Abra- 
ham Lincoln, the embodiment of justice, who dedicated his 
life to securing the rights of all men under the law. 

It is a state wherein, very generally, justice has been signally 
exemplified in the practice and purposes of courts, and this 
honorable record only emphasizes in conspicuous comparison 
the odious acts which, in the trial court of Judge Cantrill, 
have been permitted in the name of law where the life and 
liberty of citizens are at stake. Can a fair trial be had for 
those under indictment? What was the object in appropriat- 
ing one hundred thousand dollars for the conviction of the 
suspected murderers of William Goebel? Does not the evi- 
dence demonstrate that a portion of this sum has been paid 
for perjury? In the recent trial of Caleb Powers, why should 
judicial proprieties have been outraged by the refusal of 
Judge Cantrill to give a change of venue from his hearing? 
Why should a jury of twelve partizans of the late Mr, Goebel 
be selected to try the cause at bar? 

In striking contrast to the ultra partizanship of the Ken- 
tucky judge and jury, I recall an example of the profound 
sense of justice that characterized a case, largely political 
in its character, that came before the federal court in Indian- 
apolis shortly after the war, when party spirit was at its 
zenith. The Democratic treasurer of Jennings County was 
on trial. General Harrison appeared for the prosecution and 
ex-Governor Hendricks for the defense. 



48o GOVERNOR DURBIN'S LETTER 

The regular panel of jurymen was in the box. Judge 
Walter Q. Gresham was on the bench. Mr. Hendricks first 
appealed to the court for a political poll of the jury and then 
for a special jury to be composed of an equal number from 
the Democratic and Republican parties. He made a most 
earnest and eloquent appeal that justice to his client and 
the political character of the case demanded that the jury 
should be evenly divided between the two leading political 
parties, and no advantage be given over his client by the 
insidious influences of a preponderating partizan bias in the 
jury. Judge Gresham very promptly granted the request, and 
a new jury was impaneled, as asked for by Mr. Hendricks. 
Compare this act of justice, based on the proposition that no 
political judge or advantage should enter into the jury-box, 
with the record of the court and jury in the cases that have 
so far had a hearing in the trials of the alleged murderers 
of Mr. Goebel. 

On this subject Thomas Jefferson wrote: "An officer who 
is intrusted by the law with the sacred duty of naming judges 
of life and death for his fellow citizen, and who elects them 
from among his political and party friends, ought never to 
have in his power a second abuse of that tremendous mag- 
nitude." 

Does not the action of the court of appeals of Kentucky, 
in its reversal of the initial conviction in Judge Cantrill's 
court, emphasize the contention of the governor of this Com- 
monwealth that these men sought to be extradited can not 
secure a fair and just hearing? Judge Cantrill, candidate 
for a United States senatorship, instructed a jury that it 
might convict on the testimony of one alleged accomplice if 
that testimony was corroborated by that of another alleged 
accomplice ; that it might convict the defendant for the act 
of another man, to which the defendant had never agreed, 
and which was not the necessary or probable consequence 
of anything to which the defendant had agreed. It is re- 
markable that the trial court compelled the defendant to 
answer the prosecutor's questions in relation to other crimes 
than the one for which he was on trial, and then, over pro- 
tests, permitted the specially employed attorney for the 



GOVERNOR DURBIN'S LETTER 481 

prosecution to make an impassioned plea to the jury to hang 
the defendant on accusations entirely outside of the record. 
To such a perversion of justice I will not consent to consign 
any citizen of this Commonwealth, be his residence temporary 
or permanent. 

The monstrous rulings and instructions of the court, with 
its vicious partizanship further represented by a jury unani- 
mously made up of Goebel Democrats, is of itself sufficient 
cause for a refusal of your request; but, added to this, I have 
on file letters and protests from many representative Demo- 
crats of your state, prominent in the organization of the 
party, and from editors of Democratic newspapers, univer- 
sally condemning the persecution in the Goebel trials as a 
travesty upon justice, and urging that no requisitions be hon- 
ored for Mr. Taylor and Mr. Finley until reason has resumed 
sway, and the good name of Kentucky, in its procedures 
under the law in its courts, be restored. 

I had hoped the trial of Caleb Powers, just concluded, 
would demonstrate that the efforts of the prosecution were 
really to determine who the murderers of Mr. Goebel were 
in a way that would convince the people of the country of a 
sincere determination to this end; that the jury would be 
selected for its integrity rather than its partizanship ; that 
the court would remember its obligations as a judge rather 
than its aspirations for a senatorship ; that the rules of evi- 
dence having universal recognition in all the states of the 
Republic would be followed in this latest trial, especially in 
view of the reversal of the court of appeals in the former 
trials. It is a deep disappointment that the utter disregard 
of justice which marked the previous trial was as notorious 
in the second trial of Powers as in the first. Consequently 
I can only voice my condemnation thereof by refusing to 
honor your requisition, which, in effect, would make me a 
party to the conviction and punishment of two reputable citi- 
zens of Indiana. 

When better assurances of a fair and impartial trial of 
Messrs. Taylor and Finley shall be given by the trial of those 
now in Kentucky under indictment for participating in the 
assassination of Mr. Goebel, and the record of the procedure 



482 GOVERNOR BECKHAM'S REPLY 

shall show that an impartial judge sat on the bench, and 
non-partizan jurors filled the box, your requisitions will be 
honored. 

Until the time comes that justice is meted out to those now 
under the jurisdiction of the courts of Kentucky, a requisi- 
tion leading to such a travesty upon justice as the last trial 
of Caleb Powers presented will not be honored by the sur- 
render of citizens of Indiana, by any official act of mine. 

Respectfully, 

WiNFIELD T. DURBIN, 

Governor of Indiana. 
To His Excellency, J. C. W. Beckham, 

Governor of Kentucky, Frankfort, Ky. 



GOVERNOR BECKHAM'S REPLY TO GOVERNOR 

DURBIN 

Frankfort, Ky,, November ii, 1901. 
The Honorable WinHeld T. Durbin, Governor of Indiana, 

Indianapolis, Ind. 

Sir: Your refusal to honor the requisitions some time ago 
sent you by me, asking for the extraditions of ,,W. S. Taylor 
and Charles Finley, fugitives from justice from this state, 
charged with being accessories to the murder of William 
Goebel, was not unexpected ; but the remarkable letter with 
which you accompanied the return of the papers was indeed 
a surprise to me, and I sincerely regret the necessity of this 
reply. It is true I had been reliably informed that you had 
incurred campaign obligations which committed you to the 
protection of these two valuable adjuncts to your political 
fortunes, and that they had been promised immunity from 
arrest through requisitions from the Kentucky authorities 
in the event of your election as governor. This information 
has been confirmed by your conduct and by the complete 
sense of protection under which these two men seem to have 
rested since your incumbency of the office. 



GOVERNOR BECKHAM'S REPLY 483 

You are at least entitled to the credit of having faithfully 
carried out your reputed agreement with them, however 
much in doing so you have violated your oath of office and 
brought discredit upon the high position you hold. But even 
with this understanding of your embarrassing position, con- 
fronted, as you were, on the one side by the law and justice 
and on the other by a miserable political bargain, I could 
not believe that you would so far forget the dignity and ob- 
ligation of your office and the courteous relations that exist 
among the chief executives of the various states, as to go 
out of your way to offer a gratuitous insult to the people of 
Kentucky, and to cast a reflection upon the courts and public 
officials of the state. If these slanderous charges had come 
from you as an individual, then they would be treated with 
the silent contempt they so justly deserve; but as they come 
from you as the governor of a great state, I shall not hesitate 
to hold you up to public scorn, and show how unjust and 
unfounded are the wilful and inexcusable misrepresentations 
in your letter. 

When your predecessor, the late Governor Mount, refused 
to honor similar requisitions made on him by me, I declined 
to criticize him, because, while he had acted under gross mis- 
representations to him as to the facts and an erroneous con- 
ception of his official power in the matter, I yet believed that 
he had been governed by honest and conscientious convictions. 
I can not say so much for you. You are not entitled to 
such an excuse, for when, with the record in your hands, 
you deliberately misquote that record in order to forge a 
libel against the courts and citizens of this state, the plea 
of ignorance can not be entered in your behalf. Forgetful of 
the duties and proprieties of the exalted position you occupy 
as the chief executive of a sovereign state, and blinded with 
partizan hate, you have not only cast an insult upon a brave 
and generous people, but you have also exercised a power 
which has been expressly denied you by the constitution and 
laws of the United States, which you swore to uphold and 
support, when you took the oath of office. 

In your letter refusing these requisitions, you say, " I choose 
to make use of the right and the duty as the executive of the 



484 GOVERNOR BECKHAM'S REPLY 

Commonwealth to exercise a discretionary power of refusal." 
Let us see what the law is as to this " discretionary power." 
Since I have been governor of Kentucky I have never re- 
fused to honor the requisition of the governor of any state, 
and I have honored no less than a dozen issued upon me at 
different times by the governor of Indiana. It has been my 
view of the law that my duty in such matters was purely 
ministerial, not discretionary, and I have believed that when- 
ever a requisition was presented to me with the papers prop- 
erly made out, it was my duty, not to tie the case, but to 
issue the proper warrant of arrest for the fugitive and have 
him surrender to the proper officer. But it is not necessary 
to argue this question. A statement of the law is sufficient 
to convince any one save an apologist of Goebel's assassina- 
tion. In Article 4, Section 2, of the Constitution of the United 
States, is the following provision concerning " Fugitives from 
Justice " : 

" A person charged in any state with treason, felony or 
other crime, who shall flee from justice, and be found in 
another state, shall on demand of the executive authority 
of the state from which he fled be delivered up to be removed 
to the state having jurisdiction of the crime." 

Then Section 5278, of the Revised Statutes of the United 
States, reads as follows : 

" Whenever the executive authority of any state or territory 
demands any person as a fugitive from justice of the execu- 
tive authority of any state or territory to which 'such person 
has fled and produces a copy of an indictment found or an 
affidavit made before a magistrate of any state or territory 
charging the person demanded with having committed treason, 
felony or other crime^ certified as authentic by the governor 
or chief magistrate of the state or territory to which such 
person has fled to cause him to be arrested and secured and 
to cause notice of the arrest to be given to the executive 
authority making such demand, or to the agent of such author- 
ity appointed to receive the fugitive, and to cause the fugitive 
to be delivered to such agent when he shall appear." 

Observe that the word " shall " is used in both the consti- 
tutional provisions and in the statute. The expression, ** It 



GOVERNOR BECKHAM'S REPLY 485 

shall be the duty," does not allow any " discretionary power." 
But in order to avoid any discussion whatever as to the mean- 
ing of the law, let us examine the opinion of the supreme 
court of the United States in regard to it. In the case of 
Kentucky vs. Dennison (65th U. S. Reports), where the gov- 
ernor of Ohio had refused to deliver a fugitive asked for by 
the governor of Kentucky, that court, while refusing to grant 
the mandamus asked for, claiming that it had no power to 
grant it in such a case, nevertheless, said the chief justice, 
delivering the opinion of the court : 

"It will be observed that the judicial acts which are neces- 
sary to authorize the demand are plainly specified in the act 
of Congress ; and the certificate of the executive authority 
is made conclusive as to their verity when presented to the 
executive of the state where the fugitive is found. He has 
no right to look behind the character of the crime specified 
in this judicial proceeding. The duty which he is to perform 
is, as we have already said, merely ministerial — that is, to 
cause the party to be arrested and delivered to the agent or 
authority of the state where the crime was committed. It 
is said in the argument that the executive officer upon whom 
this demand is made must have a discretionary executive 
power, because he must inquire and decide who is the person 
demanded. But this certainly is not a discretionary duty upon 
which he is to exercise any judgment, but is merely a minis- 
terial duty — that is, to do the act required to be done by him, 
and such as every marshal and sheriff must perform when 
process, either criminal or civil, is placed in his hands to be 
served on the person named in it. And it has never been sup- 
posed that this duty involved any discretionary power or made 
him anything more than a mere ministerial officer; and such is 
the position and character of the executive of the state under 
the law, when the demand is made upon him and the requisite 
evidence produced. The governor has only to issue his war- 
rant to an agent or officer to arrest the party named in the 
demand." 

I commend the entire opinion in this case for your perusal 
and study, with the hope that you may profit by the instruc- 
tion, and not again, when dealing with such matters, speak 



4S6 GOVERNOR BECKHAM'S REPLY 

of " discretionary powers." Remember, too, that the con- 
struction placed upon the constitution by the highest court 
in the land becomes itself a part of that instrument which 
you took an oath, when you became governor of Indiana, to 
support. A comparison of your letter with the decision of 
the supreme court is sufficient to show whether you have been 
faithful to this oath. 

Passing on from showing how you have disregarded the 
constitution and law of your country, I will proceed to show 
how you have perverted the record in the recent trial of 
Caleb Powers and sought by such action to bring discredit 
upon an honorable and upright judge, whose life of public 
service has been unstained by a single dishonorable act, and 
whose character as a man and as a jurist stands unim- 
peached among the good people of this state. 

You criticize the recent trial of Powers and denounce Judge 
Cantrill for his instructions to the jury. You say* in your 
letter he instructed it " that it might convict on the testimony 
of one alleged accomplice if that testimony was corroborated 
by that of another alleged accomplice; that it might convict 
the defendant for the act of another man, to which the de- 
fendant had never agreed," etc. To show how untrue the 
statement is I reproduce from the record the exact instruc- 
tion of the judge in that case on this point: 

"Eighth — The jury can not convict the defendant upon 
the testimony of an accomplice or of accomplices unless the 
testimony be corroborated by other evidence tending to con- 
nect the defendant with the commission of the offense, and 
the corroboration is not sufficient if it merely shows that the 
offense was committed and the circumstances thereof." 

Is this a manly way to attack any one? Is it right and 
proper to manufacture evidence to blacken, if possible, his 
character? You insinuate, too, that the judge has been in- 
fluenced in his trials of these cases by his aspirations as a 
candidate for the United States senate. If rumor speak true, 
you are not above suspicion in that respect yourself, and the 
rancorous spirit of your letter shows that you are making a 
bid for the support of the implacables and radicals in your 
own party, with a view to that end. I doubt the wisdom of 



GOVERNOR BECKHAM'S REPLY 487 

your policy to secure such an honor. The people of Indiana 
love fair play, and although at times stirred to a high pitch 
of excitement in political contests, they are nevertheless 
broad-minded, liberal and obedient to the law. My confi- 
dence in them and in their civil institutions is so great that 
I will never, while governor of Kentucky, cast a reflection 
upon them or upon their courts by refusing to surrender to 
them a violator of their laws, when properly demanded, even 
though the fugitive should be of my own political faith and 
charged with conspiring to murder his political opponent 
whom he could not defeat otherwise. The good people of 
your state do not indorse you in this matter. 

I wish to call attention to another misstatement in your 
letter. You say you have on file letters and protests from 
" many representative Democrats of this state, prominent in 
the organization of the party, and from editors of Democratic 
newspapers," asking you to refuse to honor these requisitions. 
I make the assertion, and you can not disprove it by pro- 
ducing such a letter, that not a Democrat in Kentucky be- 
longing to the organization of the party, nor the editor of 
any Democratic newspaper, has made such a request of you. 

I have no doubt that some of the people who have urged 
you not, to give up these men did so, not because they thought 
fair trials would be denied them, but because they feared 
that closer investigation into this crime would disclose their 
part in the conspiracy. 

There is no doubt now that the assassination of William 
Goebel on the State Capitol grounds was the result of a 
deliberate and carefully planned conspiracy; that he was shot 
from a window in the office of the secretary of state, not over 
forty feet from the governor's office, where W. S. Taylor 
was when the shot was fired ; that Taylor immediately had all 
the entrances to the building guarded and forbade the ad- 
mission of the peace officers who sought to enter and search 
for the assassin ; that he threw every obstacle in his power 
in the way of preventing the arrest and conviction of any 
one suspected of the crime ; that he issued his pardons to 
some of those under suspicion, even before their arrest and 
indictment; that he was presumably the beneficiary in the 



488 GOVERNOR BECKHAM'S REPLY 

death of William Goebel, who was contesting with him the 
title of the governorship of Kentucky ; that he refused to 
recognize the writ of habeas corpus, filled the state capital 
with over a thousand armed desperadoes, and threatened the 
entire state with revolution and anarchy ; and that to-day he is 
a cringing suppliant at your feet, begging that he be not given 
over to trial on an indictment charging him with being a 
conspirator in the murder of his successful rival. 

It would be no satisfaction to any one to punish an inno- 
cent man for this crime. The mind of any civilized man 
revolts at such an idea. The brother and friends of the mur- 
dered governor simply demand the punishment of those who 
conspired to kill him. No political advantage could be gained 
by any one or any party in convicting the two self-confessed 
criminals now basking in the smiles of your protecting care. 
They are certainly not political factors now sufficient to 
excite fear in the humblest heart, and if they are innocent 
a Kentucky jury and Kentucky courts would throw around 
them every possible protection and vindication. You show 
in your letter itself that they are not in danger of "judicial 
persecution " when you call attention to the reversal of the 
case of Howard and the first trial of Powers by the court of 
appeals of this state. That court is composed of seven up- 
right and honorable judges, four of whom are of the same 
political party as yourself and these two fugitives. That 
court would certainly never permit a judgment of Judge 
Cantrill's court to stand if what you say about it is true. 

You ask : " Why, in the recent trial of Caleb Powers, 
should judicial proprieties have been outraged by the refusal 
of Judge Cantrill to give a change of venue from his hear- 
ing?" Another misstatement. Powers did not ask for such 
a change. In his first trial he did ask it, and it was changed 
by removing the case from Frankfort County to Scott County, 
under our law, which requires a judge in granting a change 
of venue to send it to an adjacent county within the same 
district. 

You ask again: "What was the object in appropriating 
one hundred thousand dollars for the conviction of the sus- 
pected murderers of William Goebel?" The same object 



GOVERNOR BECKHAM'S REPLY 489 

which prompted the government to pay secret service men 
and other detectives to discover if possible whether the mis- 
erable wretch Czolgosz had any confederate in his dastardly 
crime. Only seven thousand dollars has been spent of the 
Goebel reward fund, all in the legitimate expenses of the 
trials, and it is safe to assert that at least that much has 
already been spent in the laudable purpose of trying to dis- 
cover the anarchist plot to murder our lamented president. 

Again you ask : " Does not the evidence demonstrate that 
a portion of this sum has been paid for perjury?" There 
has not been a scintilla of evidence to that effect ever intro- 
duced, and your question was not asked in good faith. On 
the contrary, in the last trials of Powers strong evidence 
was introduced to show that some of his friends had sought 
to bribe witnesses for the Commonwealth, 

Your reference to the Jennings County, Indiana, case was un- 
fortunate for yourself, for, if I am correctly informed, your 
part in it was not very creditable to you, and should have 
acted as an estoppel upon you from ever criticizing the make- 
up of a jury. 

But I shall not prolong this communication by undertaking 
to show all the inaccuracies and misrepresentations you have 
used. I am sorry that your letter necessitated such a plain 
and frank statement of the facts. 

The honored name of Kentucl<y needs no defense at your 
hands. Her history is one of which we are justly proud. 
Over a hundred years ago she became a Commonwealth in 
the American Union, and her pioneer citizens cleared the 
forests, built homes, schools, churches, established civil gov- 
ernment and quickly placed her among the first states of the 
Union. Her people are brave, generous, hospitable and 
obedient to the law. Life, liberty, and property are as safe 
within her borders as anywhere on earth. Only one time in 
her history were these blessings threatened, and that was 
brought about by these two fugitives whom you harbor and 
some of their associates. It was then, too, that the great 
body of Kentuckians showed their splendid character, their 
forbearance and their profound respect for the law and the 
constituted authorities, and it was their patient courage at 



490 GOVERNOR BECKHAM'S REPLY 

such a critical time that brought order out of chaos, govern 
ment out of anarchy. Such a people as these could neither 
be helped by your praise nor harmed by your scurrilous 
abuse, and such a people would never knowingly permit any 
one to be unjustly deprived of life or liberty. 

In concluding your letter you say that my requisition has 
been refused because you did not want to make yourself a 
party to the " conviction and punishment of two reputable 
citizens of Indiana." But by such refusal you have made 
yourself a party after the fact to the most infamous crime 
in the history of this state, the cold-blooded and dastardly 
murder of an eminent and distinguished citizen of Kentucky, 
who had been elected to the highest office within the gift of 
our people. Respectfully, 

J. C. W. Beckham, 
Governor of Kentucky. 



bf, *'' 



